Persona: Path of Redemption
by Tourvelix
Summary: Hayashi Tetsuya moved from his now-peaceful town to the city of Kyoto after a personal incident. He will soon find out that his role as the Fool will be more than just achieving redemption.
1. Chapter 1

_The world needs a savior, someone who can lift the curses of the land. Will you rise up or will you fall and let the messengers of this ancient evil destroy everything?_

…

_So be it… the destiny of many is in your hands. This is a path you will not walk alone, there will be others who will aid you in this quest but there will be others who will try to stop you._

…

_Good luck… and welcome to the path of redemption…_

_\- April 7__th__ -_

His eyes opened immediately after hearing those words. It was a strange dream, the voice of an old man narrating a grim story but everything was black, nothing to be seen.

Now that he was awake he remembered being on the bus to Kyoto and by the looks of it he was a few minutes away from getting to the destination. To his left the dark haired boy could see the Kamogawa River in the distance along with some buildings.

He sighed and tried to prepare his things before leaving the bus but something else distracted him first, his phone. His hand quickly went for the pocket in his pants and pulled an old gray smartphone, the screen was showing it was 2:47 PM and below a big green notification that was titled `Mom´. The thumb immediately went for the green icon and moved the device to his ear.

_¨Tetsuya? ¨_ A feminine voice was heard from the other side of the phone _¨Are you at the dorms yet? I was worried since I didn't receive a call from you¨_

¨What? Oh… no no¨ Tetsuya let a small chuckle out ¨There was some traffic on the way here and the bus couldn't move for some time so I took a nap. Fortunately, I am some minutes away from the stop¨

_¨That is good my son, I hope you are feeling alright¨_

¨Yeah, it will take some time for me to get used to this¨

_¨It is only one year until… things get fixed here, Tetsuya I hope you under-¨_

¨I do…¨ He looked to the other people in the bus and noticed how they were already grabbing their bags and standing up from their seats ¨Mom, I have to leave now, the bus stopped¨

_¨I understand, well… enjoy this year and don't forget to call me from time to time! ¨_ The optimistic voice from Tetsuya's mom ended along with the call and the boy put the phone back in his pockets.

Just like the rest of the passengers he grabbed his backpack and another bag that had some of his personal belongings and left the transport just to find himself far away from the city center, he pulled his phone again to look at the map of the city and to find the place he had to go.

From the stop it was a ten-minute walk which he used to admire the old style of the city combined with the modern architecture however during his Sunday walk he remembered that strange dream, the Path of Redemption was the only words that interested him the most. What was that path, why was it redemption and why did the world need a savior? Those were questions that were floating on the boy's mind but felt like there was not going to be an answer any time soon.

His feet stopped the moment Tetsuya saw the big building in front of him, it was L-shaped and had four floors. It had an open space with some trees, benches and even tables as if it were a park where a lot of young kids were already there chatting or enjoying the day, probably students on their last day before classes start. He felt some eyes looking at him but tried not to pay attention to the other people as he walked towards the entrance of the building.

Inside there were some students chatting near a table and others were going up and down on the stairs. The entire place felt like a hotel in design which made the boy question the legitimacy of the place a bit.

¨Hello! How may I help you? ¨ The voice of a woman took him out of trance as he turned his head to the left and saw the source of that sound. It was a girl around his age behind a reception, she wore a white long-sleeved shirt with the school's logo to the side along with a stripped black and green skirt that also had the same logo, that's all he was able to see from his position.

¨Um… yeah I just got to Kyoto and was told to go here¨

¨Oh! You must be the student from that other town the teachers were talking about, what was the name? ¨

¨Inaba, it is a very peaceful town aside-¨

¨The town with all those mysterious murders! I remember seeing it on the news¨ Her voice and even movements radiated a lot of energy and happiness, pretty surprising for someone on their last day of vacation.

¨-from that¨ Tetsuya sighed, he remembered when he was very young his town became famous due to some murders that were happening there, after months of investigation the cops were able to find the real culprit and Inaba became a peaceful countryside town again, except for the fact that a lot of tourists would visit it for a tour ¨Yeah the town with the fog¨

¨How was it living there? Were you scared? Did the cops ask you any questions? Is it true there was a lot of fog? ¨ The excited attitude from the girl made the newcomer take a step back but fortunately for him she noticed it and cleared her throat in an attempt to not look like that again ¨I am sorry; I suppose I should introduce myself: I am Chika Taniguchi. Third-year student and Student Council president. And you may be…¨

¨Tetsuya Hayashi, I… second-year student¨ He held tighter his backpack as he looked down at the big folder that Chika opened.

¨Very well Tetsuya-kun, I need you to complete this two forms, one will remain here while the other will go to the school's archive¨ She grabbed the pen that was by the side of the folder and gave them both to the young one.

Name: Hayashi Tetsuya

Age: 17

Date of Birth: February 21st 2005

Birthplace: Inaba - Japan

School year: Second year

Dormitory:

Room:

As he copied the information on both forms and signed them he had to leave some of those with nothing because he was clueless ¨Uh… Taniguchi senpai what do I add on the dormitory and room? ¨ He asked and pointed with the pen at the two blank spaces.

¨Oh yeah, let me do that for you¨ Without even asking she took the forms and the pen from Tetsuya's hands and in just the blink of an eye she filled both spaces ¨There you go, dormitory Kyoto Blue; room 213¨ She went under the reception desk and pulled a pair of keys which were immediately on the counter, they had a tag with the number 213 on it ¨Alright, here it is¨ She grabbed the keyring and started explaining each one as if the future student was only five years old ¨This key is the one to your room and this one to the laundry one, _please_ do not lose them as you will be penalized if you do¨

¨I won't, don't worry¨ The green-eyed student took the keys for a closer inspection before putting them in the pockets of his jacket ¨I guess I should go up and-¨

¨Oh no no! This is just the introduction, there are some more things you must know¨ Chika went under the counter again but this time she pulled a big box, putting it between him and her and thus breaking vising from each other ¨That was heavy… anyways, the principal told me to give you this box as well because it has everything you need for Sagano School: uniform, ID card, schedule of classes as well as some more things! ¨

¨I… uh… thanks¨ He said with some doubt in his voice as he tried to move the box so he could see the president again ¨Anything else I should know? ¨

She moved a finger to her chin but then she shook her head ¨Nothing that I can remember right now, in any case there will be a pamphlet with a lot of information inside of the box, if that is not enough you can find me on the school's hallways or even the Student Council on the third floor of the main building and- Oh! ¨ She quickly looked at someone that was passing by ¨Kazushige-kun, mind helping this newcomer carry the box to his room? ¨

Tetsuya turned to see a kid with shot light-brown hair, he was wearing a black shirt with a pair of jeans that had some chains hanging from the pockets; for everyone Kazushige was trying to give the `tough kid´ vibe to everyone and he seemed to enjoy it, at least by the looks of it ¨Can't someone else do it? I'm going to the arcade¨ This student started to walk towards the exit but as he grabbed the handle…

¨May I remind you that you are part of the council as well? ¨ Chika's statement stopped him in his tracks, they couldn't see the student's face but could imagine he was angry but his grunt gave it away.

Kazushige turned and had one-frowned look on his face as he picked up the box ¨Which one is your room? ¨

Tetsuya was about to speak but it was Chika's fast (and powerful) voice who came first ¨213, your room last year! ¨

¨Yeah yeah. C'mon fresh meat let's do this quickly¨ The member of the council started his march and was followed by the other student as the two of them went up the staircase and got to the second floor. There were a lot of rooms and his was almost on the far end. Without any kind of warning he dropped the box in front of the door and put his hands on the pockets of his jeans ¨Any questions you want to ask, fresh meat? ¨

¨Oh, yeah I forgot to ask about-¨

¨It's probably on the pamphlet, I'm outta here¨ Still with some annoyance in his voice the brunette left, leaving the other boy alone.

Tetsuya closed his mouth and use the newly acquired key to open the door to his room. It was small but big enough for him to walk around, it had a bed on the left corner of the room, a desk on the other one and in between these two was a window that led to the small recreation area of the dorms. Near the door was an open wardrobe that had a mirror hanging from the inside; in front of this furniture was a door that led to the personal bathroom that only had a toilet and a wall-mounted sink with a mirror on top of it.

¨The rooms looked bigger on the webpage…¨ He whispered as he checked every corner of his own personal space before bringing all his belongings inside and closing the door.

He started by taking stuff from his backpack. Some books, a music player among other electronics and an empty vase that he would fill with a plant one day. Once empty he worked on the big bag that he brought that had his clothes and placed them on the wardrobe.

It took him a bit before all his things were in order so he could work on the box that the council president gave him.

Inside of the box was on top the pamphlet that said with big letters `SAGANO SCHOOL: STUDENT GUIDE´ in which it had a small map of the school's layout as well as the number of all the classrooms. It also had some fun facts and most importantly the student's rulebook. The next thing he found was the uniform which he remembers he sent the measures two weeks ago before going to Kyoto; it was a black jacket with some dark green details that had on the right side the emblem of Sagano, the pants were equally similar albeit with more black than green. Underneath the uniform was another one but this time the green was more noticeable and unlike the first one this was closer to some gym wear rather than something formal.

After removing all the pieces of clothing he noticed the ID card that had Tetsuya's picture as well as the name and a long number underneath.

¨This is nice¨ This time he said a bit more out loud as he placed both uniforms inside of wardrobe and the ID card along with the rest of his things by the desk ¨ (My new room for one year… I'll have to get used to this… I hope) ¨ Before Tetsuya could even sit on his bed someone knocked on the door ¨I'm coming! ¨

The raven-haired opened the door but to his surprise there was no one, the floor was empty and strangely silent. He was going to close but his eyes stopped the moment they saw something on the floor: a letter with a blue seal.

The student grabbed it and found the seal was a big V with a lot of details in it, to the sides there were two roses –also in blue- but the most noticeable detail was that the letter was directly to Tetsuya himself.

¨Huh? ¨ He closed the door and sat on the bed, having another detailed look at the letter and even shook it in case it was a prank; he held the paper against the light coming from the window and saw that there was another paper inside. The curious boy gently broke the seal pulled the message that was inside, it was a fine print with very few words in it:

_Hayashi Tetsuya, Fool. You are cordially invited to the club._

¨The what? ¨ He read it once again but didn't understand what it meant. When he looked up again the student noticed that the light from the window disappeared, it was as if the night suddenly arrived ¨What the-¨ Tetsuya dropped the letter and rose from the bed, when he tried to look outside of the window there was nothing, no lights or sounds, it was complete emptiness.

His heart started to increase in beats but he noticed one more thing, the door behind him opened and outside of his bedroom was not the same open space that was before, it was another room only things time bigger and with some lights on. It gave him a strange feeling but curiosity as well, his body slowly moved there despite his mind telling him not to do it.

After crossing the doorframe, the door to the bedroom closed and the lights inside of that strange room lit up. It was a bar that had blue walls everywhere, there were decorations in gold and a strange-looking chandelier hanging from the top that had blue flames rather than lightbulbs. There were some torches as well and it gave this bar a gothic feeling but at the same time slightly familiar.

By the counter there was a woman wearing a white shirt with a blue vest and an equally colored tie, her hair was silver and her eyes were yellow, almost unnerving; behind her were a lot of bottles that had things moving inside, _living_ things. But that was not all, opposite of Tetsuya was a table with a man sitting and facing the student; he wore a black suit but his most noticeable details were the long nose and the big eyes that were looking at the newcomer along with that wicked smile.

¨Welcome… to the Velvet Room…¨

* * *

**So this is a story started off as an RP I had with some friends, got the inspiration and decided to start a new type of plot. This is also the first time I've written a Persona story (and since english is not my first language there are bound to be some mistakes here and there). I come from the League of Legends stories and wanted to diversify a bit on what I write. However this is not my main story and I while I do have some chapters already done the main focus will be another story that I already have and is sort-of close to finishing.**

**I also have a Discord where there are a many writers and readers but we also discuss about other games and topics: ****discorddotgg / 7ZUptrJ (of course the dot should be replaced with a . )**

**With that being said I'll be posting the next chapters in a few days but until then. Hope you enjoyed this starting chapter and as always:**

**See you in the next chapter ;)**


	2. Chapter 2

¨Velvet Room? ¨ Tetsuya asked ¨But… is this some sort of prank? ¨

The long-nosed man chuckled ¨This is no prank, the Velvet Room is a place that exist between dream and reality, mind and matter¨ He extended his arm towards the other person in the bar aside from the student and this strange man ¨To my left, behind the counter is my assistant, Silvia¨ The woman with yellow eyes remained silent as she bowed both to her master and the newcomer ¨I am Igor and I inhabit this place¨

¨You… live in a bar? That is a strange way of living¨

¨The room manifests according to your own thoughts, perhaps you know the why¨ Igor allowed his hands to rest in front of him as he looked at the boy with his grim smile ¨I am certain you have questions right now, Fool, but you will have answers for them in due time¨

Something clicked in Tetsuya, it was a memory from that same day ¨Wait, you are the voice that talked to me in that dream. You mentioned a path of redemption, what was that? ¨

¨As I mentioned, there will be answers that will come in due time...¨ He made a movement with his hand and a glass filled with a dark liquid appeared; within that liquid there was something moving but the young one was not sure what it was ¨Your world is endangered by the messengers of an ancient evil and you will rise as its savior. But first you must awake to your true power, confront your true self much like others did in the past¨

¨Wait, why me? If there are others, then why not recruit them for this task? ¨ He was still confused but slowly decided to accept this, after all his mind thought that it was a dream.

¨Every Fool has to take a journey…¨ Igor let the glass on the table and then clapped. All around the bar a lot of shadowy figures appeared, all of them people who Tetsuya didn't recognize; some were talking, others were by the counter and even some were just walking around ¨…one that you will not take alone. These are all people who will come along in your journey¨

¨Why can't I see them? Can they even see me? ¨

¨Their minds are not strong enough to understand how this world works. Besides in order to appear in this place they require an invitation¨ Silvia was the one who spoke, explaining the situation to the Fool.

¨You will know who these people are as you meet them, for now they all remain shrouded in mystery¨

¨Back to the main topic… what _are_ these ancient evils that I will have to face? ¨

¨I am afraid I have no information about them, it will be your task. But do not be afraid, we will meet once again soon¨

¨Wait, this makes no sense, you gave me a lot of questions but still not a lot of answers! ¨ The entire place was slowly fading to black ¨No… I need the answers! I-¨ He blinked and the next thing Tetsuya knew was that he was back at his own bedroom ¨What? ¨ The boy looked around, went by the window and noticed that barely any time has passed ever since he was in the Velvet Room, there were still people outside and the sun was still shining ¨What just happened? ¨ Tetsuya looked down at his hand and saw that the letter was still in his hand ¨The Fool… what could that even mean? ¨

The newcomer noticed that the door to his bedroom was closed and when he opened it the bar was no longer there, it was the hallway with the many doors to the other student's rooms. With many doubts he locked the door and left the letter on top of his desk, he then grabbed the phone and played with it for an hour before going to sleep.

_\- April 8__th__ -_

_The answers you seek are in the shrine_

…

_Follow it and your path may continue._

Tetsuya woke up to the sound of thunder. He rose from the bed and saw how the sky was dark and there was rain pouring out. With utmost calm he grabbed his phone and saw that he didn't have much time left before classes started so the boy had to rush everything. He immediately switched to the black and green uniform, grabbed everything he needed for the first day and left the bedroom. On the main floor there were some students already dressed in their uniforms.

Before leaving the dorms Tetsuya walked to a vending machine that was inside of the building and bought a loaf of bread for breakfast ¨ (I should look for some work around here, I will run out of money soon) ¨ He thought to himself as he grabbed his meal and left the dormitory.

The rain didn't seem to stop, the young Hayashi was a couple of blocks away from Sagano and was still on time. Most of the students were able to cross the street but he was stuck on the other side as the green light shone and the cars started to move. Despite being very close to the city center it was still a bit quiet, probably because it was still early in the morning.

¨Oh no! ¨ An unknown male voice was rapidly approaching Tetsuya.

¨Wait up! ¨ Another unknown voice, except this one was female.

When the student turned he saw two young people using the same uniform as him, the boy had short brown hair and had a black and red backpack in his hands; behind this one was a girl with long dark red hair and wearing glasses. The guy on the front was trying to slow down but his shoes unfortunately slipped in the rain and caused his fall near Tetsuya.

¨Roka-senpai! ¨ The girl shouted and ran towards the fallen boy, dropping the umbrella and trying to help her friend.

Tetsuya looked at the two of them and went to grab the other umbrella.

¨Stupid rain, I hate it! ¨

¨Senpai if you didn't run then maybe you wouldn't have fall¨ The girl grabbed Roka's backpack and gave it to him as she helped him get back on his feet ¨Where's my umbrella? ¨ She turned and saw how Tetsuya was giving her the object back ¨Oh, thank you¨

By the time the dark haired was about to move the boy who fell stopped him with his voice ¨Wait a minute, have I've seen you before? ¨

¨Uhm… I believe not, I arrived to this city yesterday¨

¨Oh! You are the student from the countryside, yeah the student council prez' was talking about it yesterday morning, saying she wanted to meet the student from that famous town¨

¨Y-yeah she was excited yesterday¨ He said remembering the conversation and how Chika was very excited.

¨The name's Roka, Oishi Roka¨ The student hanged the backpack from his shoulder and then pointed with his thumb at the girl that was right beside him ¨The person who you gave the umbrella is Wakamura Hitomo¨

¨Hi¨ Hitomo waved.

¨I'm Hayashi Tetsuya, I arrived here yesterday and… had quite the interesting day¨ Of course talking about the Velvet Room, the voice in his dreams and the inhabitants of that place would mark him as the `weird one´ and right now his goal was not to be a target for the rest of the students.

¨I can imagine, meeting the prez' can be quite the experience¨ Roka chuckled and looked up ¨Hey, the light's gone red, we should go before we are late¨ The three of them walked together and stopped as they arrived at the school's entrance.

Much like the dorms it was a big building with a modern-westernized style, it had three floors as well as two buildings nearby, one was the gym and the other the cafeteria. By the entrance there was a big sign with the name of the school.

¨It was smaller in the pictures…¨ Tetsuya whispered, still in awe from his new school.

¨Come on¨ Roka tapped on his companion's shoulder ¨You don't want to get late on your first day¨

¨And you do, senpai? ¨

The brown haired remained silent for a moment, his gaze was blank for a few seconds ¨Yeah I guess not¨

The three of them split up to the different classrooms and continued their day. Fortunately for Tetsuya it was a calm and fast day and they were allowed to leave the school at noon and thus have the rest of the day for himself but (un)fortunately the same people that talked to him in the morning appeared once again.

¨Hey, Tetsuya-chan! ¨ Roka waved at the student, Hitomo was once again following her friend ¨Planning on going back to the dorms already? ¨

¨There is nothing else to do for today¨ He looked at the entrance, there were a lot of students leaving already and the rain stopped for now ¨Maybe I'll explore Kyoto¨

¨Oh, I'm glad you said that, Hitomo and I can show you around¨

¨Thanks but I want to leave my things back at the dorms first¨

¨Senpai, you should leave him do that first¨

¨Nonsense, the day is young and the faster we get away from this place the happier we'll be! ¨ With a lot of confidence the boy started to push the other students outside of the main building and acted as a guide for Tetsuya.

Their first stop was an area that was a street away from the school, it was a big fast food shop, very colorful and already with a lot of people inside, mainly students.

¨This is the Big Bang Burger, there's another one of these on the other side of the city, do you have one in your town uh… what was the name? ¨

¨Inaba, and no, we do have one of the best Ramen shops I've ever been to¨

¨Oh well, you should go there one day, unfortunately they said they have a challenge there but it's only available in Tokyo for some reason. Oh well, next stop! ¨ The trio kept moving with Roka on the front while the other two were following from behind.

¨So, Tetsuya-san, how are you liking Kyoto so far? ¨ The girl asked, she carried her umbrella on one hand while on the other she had her bag.

¨It is… different I suppose, the change of scenery and the fact that now it's louder than in the morning makes it a bit… annoying. Though I guess I can get used to it¨

¨That's the spirit! ¨ Said the guide ¨And speaking of spirit, tell me Tatsuya, have you gone to a temple before? ¨

¨When I was a kid, and its Tetsuya¨ The student corrected the other one and started to imagine what the next stop in this tour would be.

¨Alright so I'm pretty sure you heard that Kyoto has _a lot_ of temples and shrines, both within the city and some others on the outskirts, the one we are going to see right now is Funashu Inari, if you think the city is loud then you will love when you go past the gates, it gets really quiet there, perfect for meditation¨

Unlike the fast food shop, the shrine was a bit far away from the school and the dorms. But Tetsuya already noticed how there was a bit more of peace around that neighborhood. Eventually the three of them arrived to a more secluded place where they were greeted by a long set of stairs and a Torii gate that led to the shrine itself; the classic style of this entrance was a sign that despite all the advances in society there were still some places that retained the old ways of Japan.

The walk to the top was quite fast and just like Roka said, everything was quiet. There weren't a lot of people there and those were mostly adults.

¨Welcome to the Fushima Inari shrine, it is not much like the golden one but it is something, and it's very close to the dorms¨

¨Sometimes I come here after a bad day to clear my mind¨ Hitomo said.

Tetsuya was looking around but something caught his attention; one of the doors to the temple was open but he couldn't see anything inside, instead what his eyes were seeing was a black and red spiral that felt inviting.

¨Were you listening? ¨

¨Huh? What? ¨

¨I said if you like this place… are you okay? ¨ The student was about to open his mouth to answer but got interrupted when they all heard the sound of thunder and suddenly rain started to fall over them ¨We need to find a roof¨ The guide looked to the sides and noticed the open door to the temple ¨Let's go! ¨ He started to run in that direction.

¨Senpai, wait, don't run or you'll fall! ¨ The friend had to follow and Tetsuya had no other option either, he followed the other two students inside, crossing the door and the strange spiral that he saw.

¨What…? ¨ Roka asked but the last person to enter didn't notice at first.

The inside of the temple was different than what they all thought, there were big red walls to the sides and a long hallway that forked at the end of it, they couldn't see anything above the walls and the light that was equally red. The floor and the ceiling shared the same blood-red hue and.

¨What is this? ¨ Tetsuya said, looking everywhere in front of him while Hitomo turned around to face the exit.

_The answers you seek are in the shrine_

A female voice rung in the boy's head, a pulsing pain that remained for a few seconds before leaving ¨The answers…¨ He repeated the same words ¨But what am I supposed to seek here? ¨

¨This is getting creepy; we should leave now¨

¨Uh… senpai… where's the exit? ¨ The girl with the glasses said with a little fear in his voice, shaky and uncertain on what to do.

¨What do you mean where's the exit? We just came from…¨ Roka's words trailed off when he saw that the entrance to the temple disappeared and instead it was replaced with the same hallway they were in ¨…there¨


	3. Chapter 3

Without the exit and a long corridor in front of them, the three students had no idea on what to do or where to go. They started to knock on the labyrinth's walls but they were all solid.

¨S-senpai… where are we? ¨

¨This has to be a prank of some sorts¨ Roka's hands went everywhere, trying to find a hidden button or something that could get them out of there ¨Hello! This prank has gone for too long now, we surrender! ¨ Roka shouted atop of his lungs but there was no response ¨Dammit, this has to be some sort of escape room, right? ¨

¨I don't think so¨ Tetsuya looked at the ceiling but there was no giveaway that they were in an escape room or something similar but they did feel that someone or _something_ was watching them ¨I'd say we should be moving, maybe the exit is somewhere else¨

¨Yeah, let's go¨ The other boy gave up on his attempt to find a secret in the wall and decided to walk along with Tetsuya and Hitomo.

Nothing changed, long hallways that led to even more hallways, no sign of an exit or even a door that could lead to a different place. This maze seemed to have no end and even though they were there for some minutes their walk felt like hours.

¨Was your plan to trap me in this place? ¨

¨No it was not! ¨ Roka was angry already ¨This never happened! Or… uh… actually this is the first time I went to the temple¨

¨Wait so why did you bring me here in the first place?!¨

¨I don't know okay! I thought you might like shrines and temples of Kyoto just… I just never thought this would happen¨

¨Senpai, can you hear that? ¨ The two students remained silent after the girl voiced her concern.

At first there was silence, the only sound they were able to hear was their footsteps and their own breathing but then something else surfaced. It was like screaming.

¨Someone is in danger and is coming this way! ¨

The three students ran in the direction of the screaming but before they could even turn at the next hallway Tetsuya crashed against something and fell to the ground. Both Roka and Hitomo were surprised at what was the thing that the new student crashed into they didn't even try to help him.

¨What was that? ¨ The dark haired boy was on his back and saw a strange blue-flaming orb that was `looking´ back at him ¨Huh? ¨

¨What?! Who are you?! Doesn't matter, they are coming¨ The voice of a female came from inside the sphere itself.

¨Wait, who's coming? ¨ Hitomo asked, feeling already a bit scared of what that thing was or who could be chasing.

¨Shadows, they found us! ¨

¨Shadows? What are those? ¨

The group turned to see three blobs that were wearing a strange theater mask. At first they were looking at the blue sphere but then they focused on the three students. From their slimy bodies they threw sharp knives that surprisingly didn't hit any except one that was now stuck in the girl's bag.

¨Run away! ¨ The sphere screamed and started to float away in the direction the young ones came, Roka then helped Tetsuya back on his feet and the students followed the orb in hopes of outrunning the slimes that attacked them.

As they kept trying to escape from the monsters the group found themselves in a problem, the path they took led to a dead end, despite them using it before and taking the same route.

¨Wait what?! We just came from here! ¨ Roka's voice gave away that he was annoyed and scared, that place was going to be their tomb.

¨We are trapped! ¨

The four of them turned and saw the shadows were able to catch up to them.

_Awake to your true power, confront to your true self much like others did in the past_

The voice of Igor struck in the student's head, remembering his visit to the Velvet Room and then a pulsating headache that made him kneel.

¨Tetsuya-kun! ¨ Hitomo said and when she tried to help him get back up one of the shadows threw another knife to which she blocked with her bag.

_Is this how you planned things to go? Escape from your miserable life just to die like a rat?_

W-what… who… who are you? ¨ Tetsuya answered to a new voice that appeared, his whispers were only heard by himself and this new entity that spoke.

_I am the true self, and I know you don't want things to repeat themselves. You feel guilt, sadness, you want things to change, you want to __**redeem**__ yourself._

¨Redeem… redemption…¨

_Release the truth. Show everyone who you truly are and fight!_

¨Fight…¨ Tetsuya blinked and noticed that the headache disappeared and that in his hand there was an orb, smaller than the one that they found, slightly smaller than a basketball. The student stood up slowly and held the ball in front of him; it shone with a white and gray light.

¨What… what is he doing? ¨ Roka asked, trying to stay away from what the other student was about to do, the girl did the same but the sphere remained there, looking at Tetsuya.

A smile appeared on his lips, in his mind a word was branded in flames, a button as he would call it. His fingers started to press on the ball of light and small cracks appeared at the base. He opened his mouth and recited a word that would change the tide of everything.

¨Per… so… na¨ A whisper, a word that made no sense but as he kept pressing on the sphere it broke into million pieces and the smile on Tetsuya turned to a grin as something started to manifest behind him.

It was like smoke at first and eventually the figure started to grow arms, legs and a head. A muscular person with a golden armor, a sword and a round shield. The protection it was using resembled to the ancient Greece and the helmet he wore was not allowing any of them to see his face.

¨_I am thou. Thou art I. From the depths of your soul I came to aid you, to release yourself from the guilt and to the path of redemption. I am Theseus, Slayer of the Minotaur! ¨ _The ominous voice of the warrior made the shadows take a step back and the other students were both amazed and scared of what Tetsuya did ¨_Allow me to share my strength with you and we will defeat those who oppose you! ¨_

¨Yeah... let's do this. Theseus, GO! ¨ As the boy commanded the greek warrior swung his blade creating fire and causing some of the shadows fly away, the one that remained there tried to attack once again but the sword from the Persona cut the creature in half.

¨That's how you do it! ¨ Roka cheered from behind, still not understanding what was happening but enjoying the battle.

¨Boss, watch out! ¨ The orb warned about one of the shadows returning, ready to strike ¨Use your weapon! ¨

¨My weapon? ¨ Tetsuya looked back for a second and when he eyed the shadow another light appeared in front of him. It was a handle, he grabbed it and a bronze sword appeared ¨What is this? ¨

¨Tetsuya-kun! ¨ Hitomo yelled and the student immediately paid attention, the shadow was charging at him in an attempt to make the boy fall, however he was quickly to react and was able to stab the creature, albeit falling to the ground. Just like dust the slime disappeared and it dropped a bag that was now resting on top of his chest.

¨Boss, there is still one more out there¨ The orb moved and was now floating close to Tetsuya ¨That shadow uses ice attacks, use fire to counter it! ¨

¨Fire? ¨ The dark haired was confused at first and then looked at the Persona who was still standing against the lone shadow ¨Theseus, burn that thing! ¨Without any words the warrior swung his blade once again and fireball flew at high speed, hitting the shadow and destroying it.

With the battle over the entire group was able to catch a breather. Tetsuya laid his head on the ground and Theseus disappeared. He thought he could have a moment to relax but Roka was already by him, his face could only be described as excitement.

¨THAT WAS SO AWESOME! How did you do that? Is there any way you can do it again? ¨ Roka wanted to ask so many questions that he forgot about the maze.

¨Senpai, we should let him breathe for a minute, he looks tired¨ And she was right, Tetsuya was drained, that battle while it lasted very few minutes it took everything from the student. With the help of the other two he was able to get back on his feet while using the sword as support as well ¨So… what was that? ¨ Hitomo asked.

¨I… don't know¨ The young one was confused as well, he fought against strange creatures in a place that should not exist and with the help of a spirit that was supposed to be his true self. The more he thought about it the less sense it made and the more questions it generated. He turned his head towards the flying orb ¨So… who or _what_ are you? ¨

¨Me? Well, my name is…¨ The sphere remained silent as it looked to the side a bit ¨I… I can't remember unfortunately. I've been in this labyrinth for years, actually let me ask you this, what period are we in? ¨

¨Period? ¨ The three students looked at each other ¨Uh… this is not… we are in the 21st century¨

¨21st century?! Wait, I remember, someone told me the same a hundred years ago but I didn't believe his words. Guess he wasn't lying¨

¨Wait, there is someone here as well? ¨ Roka was surprised that they weren't the first ones in the maze.

¨Hold on, you asked for the period. You were here in this place for centuries, what do you remember from that? ¨

¨Well… last I remember the Clan Oda was becoming very powerful ¨

¨Clan Oda?! _The_ Clan Oda led by Nobunaga?!¨ Hitomo's eyes widened at the response of the orb ¨You have almost five hundred years! ¨

¨What?!¨ Both Roka and Tetsuya looked at the girl, almost as if they couldn't believe that the _thing_ they had near was very old.

¨What truly matters is that all of you are safe now and so is the Boss¨

¨Boss? ¨

¨Anyway, how do we get out of here? ¨ The brown haired asked, looking at the walls and the path they just used.

¨What do you mean? The door is just right behind you¨ After those words the trio of students turned around and saw a door that was similar as the one they just entered ¨You should leave, there are more shadows in this place and the Boss doesn't look like he is in condition to fight¨

¨Why am I the boss? ¨ Tetsuya asked but got immediately dragged by Roka who was also dragging his friend.

By the time the three students crossed the door it disappeared and the orb was alone once again in the labyrinth.

¨I hope he returns; this place needs to find peace…¨

Once outside of that cursed place the three students found themselves back on the shrine but time passed for them, the sky was starting to darken and when they checked their phones it was almost 7 PM.

¨So... what we saw… did it exist? ¨ They turned towards the play they entered before but now the door was closed ¨It felt… so real, and that thing… Theseus you called it¨

Tetsuya looked at his hands, he still had the sword despite first appearing on that strange world. His body was feeling slightly numb, tired and in need of rest. He almost fell to the ground but his new two friends helped him stay back on his feet ¨Yeah... my Persona, my power… my true self¨ He now looked at both Roka and Hitomo ¨Would anyone believe us if we told them what we saw? ¨

¨I know I believe you, no way what happened was a dream or a prank, it felt too real¨ Roka immediately grabbed one of the knives that were still stuck in the girl's bag ¨Look at this, this is enough proof that we were attacked and-¨ But his words were cut off the moment the weapon turned into dust and the sword in Tetsuya's hand disappeared in a flash of light ¨Well… there goes the proof¨

¨Senpai, we should leave now, some of the monks are looking strangely at us¨

¨Right, we should leave you at your dorm first. Let's go¨

The three students decided to remain silent about what happened but the problem was that no one knew what to say, the class at the school was not that interesting despite being the first day. When both Roka and Tetsuya left Hitomo at her dorm building they kept on walking to their own; they were in the same building but on different floors.

The walk took minutes and once inside of the building they found a lot of students in the lobby, there was a meeting and the president from the student's council was in front of everyone.

¨Good, you both arrived. Please stay here for a minute, there is something that you all need to hear¨ The group of students was talking to each other, there hasn't been a meeting like this in years and they were wondering why would this happen ¨I am sure everyone is wondering why I called you here for this meeting because there is… a situation: One of the students has been reported missing after school and now the authorities are looking for this person, her name is Ikari Romi and was a person from this dormitory. If you have any information, _anything_ that could help by finding Romi-kun, please report it to the police. That is all¨

Everyone was shocked, the disappearance of another student was something that had never happened to this scale. There were some worried faces while others were just shrugging it, they didn't care about this missing person. The two boys didn't have anything to say about it and went for the stairs however it was Roka who followed Tetsuya to his floor. Now that they had a more private moment the brunette finally spoke up.

¨You know… this might sound weird but... I feel there is a connection between the thing we saw at the temple and the disappearance of this girl¨ Roka looked at the other students who were in the floor and tried to lower the tone in his voice.

¨How so? They seem like two unrelated things, besides what happened to us is far more… mystical you could say¨

¨I know but… it's a weird feeling y'know? I'd say we should explore that place again¨

¨Wait, hold up. We barely escaped, we don't know what we will find next in that place or if there will be an exit¨ Tetsuya pointed at himself ¨Look at me, I fought against those things and I can barely keep myself standing¨

¨Oh, yeah, your body needs some rest so I better leave you then. I'll talk to Hitomo-kun tomorrow and we'll discuss again about this¨

The two students waved at each other and Tetsuya entered into his room just to leave everything on the desk and to collapse on the bed. He would describe that what happened at that labyrinth was amazing, fighting against those Shadows and summoning a Persona was something he would never have thought, that it was all a dream but unfortunately it was not; despite being awesome there was the risk of being killed, of being trapped in that madhouse. However, there were more questions to be answered and he felt that the next time he visited the Velvet Room the amount of questions he had would double.


	4. Chapter 4

The darkness of his bedroom was replaced with the blue of the Velvet Room, Tetsuya was already seated and in front of him was the long-nosed man, his grin was still there and was terrifying as always. However, the boy was surprised at the first thing Igor did, he clapped.

¨Well done, Fool. Against all odds you were able to fight against guilt and awakened your Persona¨ To the left of the old man the assistant came with a silver plate that had details in gold and left two glasses full of a dark liquid in the table, then she returned behind the counter ¨However this is the first step towards redemption, and an enemy is in the way. I must say that you have found interesting people already, the bonds you form with other people will be crucial to get to the end of the path, allies and enemies¨

¨How will I find those other people? ¨

¨In time you will know¨

¨The Velvet Room will open the functions for you as you advance in your path, I will explain them to you when the time comes¨ Silvia spoke up, filling a glass of the same dark liquid

¨For now¨ Igor raised his glass and so did the assistant with hers ¨It is time to celebrate. To your first step, Fool¨

Tetsuya was confused but decided to do the same thing, he grabbed the glass and raised it just so he could drink it afterwards. One long drink, the flavor was non-existent but it made him drowsy up to the point he fell asleep on the table.

…

_\- April 9__th__ -_

The student woke up and found himself back in his room, the alarm of his phone started to ring and noticed that this time he wasn't late for classes. Since he didn't change his clothes he tried to tidy himself before leaving the dorm.

Once on the main floor there weren't too many students, before he decided to go through the main door someone stopped him.

¨Tetsuya-kun! ¨ It was a familiar voice ¨You are not going to leave without me, right? ¨

¨Good morning Roka-kun¨ He looked up and down to the person he met yesterday and noticed that his uniform was untidy, probably slept with it but unlike the Persona-user he just left the bedroom like that ¨Maybe you should clean your clothes before leaving¨

¨I'll do it on the way, listen we need to talk¨ He looked around ¨But not here. Let's start walking and meet up with Hitomo, ok? Oh, by the way¨ From his pockets he pulled a bag with some metallic sounds inside ¨I picked up all the bags from the Sh- things and forgot to tell you, but they all have Yen in it¨

¨What?!¨ Tetsuya took the bag to confirm what Roka said and it was in fact true ¨Why would those things be made of money? ¨

¨Do I look like the type of person that knows an answer to that? Let's go or we are going to be late¨ After they left Tetsuya stopped to use his well-earned money to buy some breakfast.

As they were walking towards the school the silence from the two about the labyrinth had to end eventually, especially since there was no one nearby that could hear them talk about it ¨So… what do you think about my theory from yesterday? ¨ The student took a bit but didn't answer to Roka's question ¨You know… the missing girl and that strange place we were yesterday¨

¨I don't know; why would they be connected? ¨

¨That thing that called you boss said there were people there, what if this girl stepped into the temple by accident and well… disappeared? ¨

¨We would've found her; don't you think? ¨

¨Yeah but…¨ Roka looked away, a bit sad that his theory might end up being nothing but then he came up with an idea ¨Hey, do you think I'll be able to get my own spirit too? ¨

¨Spirit? Oh you mean Persona? I don't know¨ While Igor did mention there would be people allies in Tetsuya's path he was uncertain if those ones will also be able to have Personas just like him¨ They kept walking until the loud student decided to stop in place, looking everywhere but he seemed not to find what he wanted ¨What is it? ¨

¨Hitomo-chan is not here, she never wakes up late…¨ Roka sounded a bit worried that his friend was not there.

¨Maybe she is already at the school. Yesterday was brutal, we were tired and maybe she woke up late¨

¨Yeah…¨ He once again smiled after hearing the Fool's words ¨Yeah I'm sure she's already at school, we'll meet her during recess. Let's go¨

The first half of the day went on normally, classes were boring and still meeting new teachers. It would be just another day for Tetsuya but the moment he left the classroom during recess he found Roka, he looked worried and the usual smile on his face was now gone completely.

¨Meet my behind the gym, we _need_ to talk¨ He whispered to the student and immediately left without letting the Persona-user to reply.

They didn't have much time before the next period started to Tetsuya sped up and went to the meeting point. Unlike the other areas of the school this one seemed to be more secluded but there was a shed where the staff kept the tools for taking care of the gardening. Usually there are no students there but this time there was one waiting and it was walking back and forth, talking to itself.

¨Why did you need me? ¨

¨It's Hitomo-chan. She's missing¨

¨You sure she-¨

¨No. Another student from her floor came asking me if I knew where she was but of course I didn't. She also told she never entered her bedroom¨

¨That's impossible, we walked with her to her building, how can that be possible?!¨ Not even Tetsuya could believe that, they both made sure for Hitomo to enter but there was no room to doubt the words of the other young boy ¨Maybe…¨

¨First that girl disappears and now… Kyoto was a quiet city, ever since we entered into that labyrinth weird things started to happen. This is no coincidence; I can't find a way to connect that place with the girls missing but we have to try¨

¨So what do you suggest? ¨

¨As soon as classes end we'll meet at the shrine; I need to pick something up. With your Persona we should be able to get through those Shadows and find Hitomo-chan¨

¨What if she is not there? ¨

¨Then at least we'll find more about the place, that labyrinth exists for a reason and we might get the answer to it¨ Roka was determined with his plan and dragging Tetsuya was just making his idea fail-proof, of course he was certain it wouldn't be easy.

And so the rest of the periods were a long wait, Tetsuya wasn't able to see Roka at the end of the classes and assumed that the meeting at the shrine would still happen. All of the students were returning to their respective places but the Fool took a detour and headed directly to the rendezvous point. Up there was the other student with a bigger backpack and with a sledgehammer that was poking out.

¨Good, we are ready for the rescue¨ The two of them looked at the entrance of the temple, the strange spiral was there ¨I know I was excited earlier but now I'm thinking this is a bad idea… dammit, it's my fault¨

¨No it's not, you can't back out now! Hitomo is your friend¨

¨Yeah… you are right, let's go¨ And with those words the two students ran towards the temple and just like the first time they ended up in the mysterious labyrinth but this time it was different, behind them was a very big door that led outside ¨This is different¨

¨Boss! ¨ A familiar voice was heard and the young ones turned back to the front and saw the `soul´ floating around a corner and moving towards the two of them ¨I am glad you both came here, there is a problem¨

¨We do have our own problems as well¨ Roka said, pulling the sledgehammer from his backpack ¨I'm sorry but we can't help you¨

¨That's the thing, ever since you entered weird events happened and there have been new people coming into the labyrinth, including your friend with red hair¨

¨Red hair- Hitomo! ¨ Both Tetsuya and Roka looked at each other, there was no doubt that they found where she was ¨Where is she? ¨

¨Somewhere in the labyrinth, but if we stay here we should be safe. The connection between the mortal realm and the Dark Road is weak and the Shadows cannot survive in places like the entrance¨

¨Dark Road? ¨ Tetsuya was the one who talked this time, while these type of questions should've been answered back at the Velvet Room, Igor decided to keep it a mystery and for the Fool to discover.

¨The Dark Road is a realm different from the ones of the living and the dead, an in between you could say¨

¨Like a purgatory? ¨

¨Similar but no, the main difference is-¨

¨Enough chatter, Hitomo-chan could be in danger¨ Roka was not patient about it, he started to go run into the labyrinth but before the others could follow a wall suddenly appeared and the path for both the soul and Tetsuya was cut off, forced to take a different one.

¨Oh no, he is trapped! ¨

¨Is there any we can reach him? ¨ Tetsuya opened his hand and the same handle from the first time appeared, he gripped it and the rest of the blade materialized.

¨I can sense him but the labyrinth is changing. If we move now then maybe we can get to him before the Shadows do¨

The soul led the way while the Fool was following from behind, they were now in a dangerous place but even more for Roka who was cut off and with no Persona he wouldn't last long.

…

¨Damn damn damn damn¨ Those were the only words that came out of his mouth, no point in turning back as a group of five shadows were chasing him. Roka did try to fight back but the moment he was able to destroy one of those shadows another one appeared almost instantly, replacing the fallen enemy.

The hallways looked infinite unlike his stamina which already took a toll on him. The student's legs finally gave away and he fell to the ground, the sledgehammer slipping away from his hand and far away from him. He turned around with his back against the ground and tried to stay away from the Shadows but unfortunately they were faster.

¨I'm such an idiot…¨ There was venom in his voice ¨If Hitomo-chan was here she would've told me not to run in alone… If only I was able to do the same as that guy…¨ He clenched his fist and punched the ground, he was angry and powerless, unable to do anything but to accept his death ¨It's my fault she is in this mess…¨

_¨Is it truly your fault? Does guilt control your life? ¨_

A strange and unfamiliar voice rang inside of his head ¨What? Who said that? ¨

_¨Will you let the mistakes of the past drag you down? Redemption is possible but one must fight for it¨_

¨Redemption¨ He laughed at that word ¨I cannot get redemption, losing Hitomo-chan was the last nail in my coffin¨ This time Roka grunted ¨This mission was nothing but a failure…¨

From within the labyrinth another voice was heard, it was loud but unlike the one that was talking to him he _did_ recognize it.

¨SENPAI! ¨

It was a cry for help, Hitomo knew that Roka wouldn't abandon her but even if she was nowhere to be found this gave some strength to the student. He grabbed the sledgehammer and used it as support to get himself back on his feet ¨I can't give up, for me… for Hitomo-chan… I may have made mistakes in the past, but it's time to make things right¨ Roka said out loud at the Shadows whose knives were ready to attack the student ¨If Tetsuya won't show up then I'll have to do the entire work myself! ¨ A smile appeared on his face that got immediately replaced by pain, a throbbing headache that felt like something was piercing his skull.

_¨Let your mistakes from the past disappear and forge a path. I am thou, thou art I, your redemption is what will make us form a contract ¨_

Roka stood up, the pain still there but there was something else as well, a gray orb floating in front of him ¨Hitomo… I'm coming for you… come forth! ACHILLES! ¨ He grabbed the sledgehammer with two hands and did a wild swing to destroy the orb. Behind him a spirit stood, wearing armor similar to Theseus but this time he used a spear and a shield, his face hidden behind a helmet but two small white lights acted as eyes. With the appearance of this new entity Roka felt a surge of power coming to him ¨This… my Persona… now I can do anything, I can save Hitomo¨

¨Roka! ¨ From behind him it was Tetsuya who finally arrived, he looked tired due to the Shadows he had to face however he was surprised at the spirit behind the student ¨Is that? ¨

¨Oh yeah... listen, I heard Hitomo-chan's voice, we need to clear this and get a move on! ¨

¨Sounds like a plan¨

With the two of them finally reunited they started to fight against the Shadows, the sledgehammer seemed more effective now as it destroyed the enemy rather than see it reform in front of themselves. With fire coming from Theseus' sword the other Greek hero was not behind when it came to magic, from the tip of the spear a light green glow appeared and then an almost-invisible slash cut two of the opponents, making them disappear and dropping a couple of bags, similar to the ones from the previous day.

¨That… that was…¨ Roka couldn't finish his sentence and had to sit on the ground, giggling at this victory ¨I did it… my own Persona¨ He looked up and saw Tetsuya's hand open, waiting to help his new friend back on his feet but the student waved it away and used the sledgehammer to stand up ¨We have to move on, Hitomo's voice was not too far from here¨

¨The labyrinth changes constantly, she may sound closer but for all we know she could be very far away¨

¨Let's go then¨ The boy took a step forward but felt a lot of pain as well as his body being tired, he needed some rest and summoning his inner power did nothing but to drain a lot of his stamina ¨We're so close…¨

¨We don't know¨ The soul added to the conversation ¨I can sense she is here and she is not in danger, or rather there are no Shadows with her¨

¨The more reason for us to keep going¨

¨You can barely move, much less hold up a fight. I won't be able to carry you and battle at the same time, we should return and properly search tomorrow. If you die here then Hitomo won't forgive you¨

The words of Tetsuya were right, but he hated them ¨Fine…¨ Roka stood up, using his weapon as a cane so he wouldn't fall.

¨Have you finally decided? Let's get out of here! ¨ The soul yelled and the three of them left that area and abandoned the labyrinth. It was a victory; they knew where the girl was but their search would have to be delayed for a day.

…

The two students walked away from the shrine and left the area. Not a lot of time passed since they were in the labyrinth and before heading into the dorms they went to the nearest Big Bang Burger to rest. Despite the time the place was almost empty and those who were there were mostly business people and very few students. Tetsuya was sitting by one of the empty tables and saw how Roka came with two big cups.

¨I think I must thank you for what you did. Showing that there was something we could do, despite being powerless people¨

¨I… no problem? ¨ Even though he was glad the other one had a Persona, he didn't do anything directly.

¨However I am still angry, we know where Hitomo-chan but we still have to find her¨

¨At least that soul told us that she was not in danger¨

¨I know… but she must feel alone there, we can't wait too long. Tomorrow is going to be the day we rescue her¨ Roka gave one of the cups to Tetsuya as he raised his ¨I guess we can do a small celebration. To our new powers and our goal to save a friend¨ With a smile on his face the Fool also raised his cup, he found a new ally and a friend in Kyoto.

_I am thou, thou art I… Thou hast acquired a new vow._

_It shall open a path and break the chains from the past._

_With the birth of the Chariot Persona, you acquired new power that will lead to redemption._

¨Anyway¨ from his backpack he pulled some of the same bags the Shadows dropped back at the labyrinth ¨Some of those things were carrying money, let me invite you some fries at the very least¨


	5. Chapter 5

_\- April 10__th__ -_

The sound of the clock echoing in his ears, every tick and tock was each second that passed and it was the only thing he was able to hear. His mind was somewhere else, the memories of the labyrinth and the battle against those Shadows but there was something else, the words of his new friend. It was a promise they made the day before.

After classes they would go back to that cursed place and rescue Hitomo once and for all; they were rested and prepared to fight any enemies thanks to their new powers. However, Tetsuya had a lot of questions that were still unanswered.

The student looked to his left, the window showed a clear sky with birds outside, the sound of the other kids and even the professor were muffled as the constant tick from the clock was keeping his brain distracted. Or at least until one of the other students tapped his shoulder, bringing him back from that trance. The Persona-user turned back to the front of the class to notice an angry professor and part of the classroom looking back at him.

¨Mister Hayashi, this class was made for learning, not fantasizing about being free outside of class. Now if you would _please_ get to the front and solve the exercise number 6? ¨ Tetsuya nodded silently and grabbed his notebook with the exercise already solved and stood up from his chair. The voices of the students were heard again, he took the marker from the professor's hand and started to do the math problem, taking a look at his notes to make sure there were no mistakes.

As he was writing on the board the door to the classroom opened and the attention of most of the group went immediately there ¨Excuse me, professor¨ It was a familiar voice, one that the boy heard before ¨I was told to take Tetsuya-kun to the student's council office¨

¨Huh, so that's where they decided to stay…¨ The old man looked at the student and frowned ¨Finish the exercise and then go with the council president¨ A nod was enough for him as a reply and the dark haired one wrote the last bits of the equation, then went for his desk to leave the notebook and headed for the door where Chika was waiting.

¨Please, follow me¨ The happy demeanor from the girl was gone and instead it was replaced with a more serious look from her.

It was confusing, not knowing where he was going exactly or why gave him a bit of anxiety ¨Uhm… president… Taniguchi-senpai, why was I taken out of the classroom? ¨

¨You don't have to worry but… have you heard we had another person missing? ¨ His eyes widened up, so far there were two girls who disappeared and this gave him the impression that there was a new one ¨I am sure you know her, Wakamura Hitomo, she is a year below you and is usually seen with Oishi Roka¨

It was a relief that no other person was taken but Tetsuya didn't show any sign of it, he still kept a serious face ¨Yes, I know her, although not that much¨

¨I would not be surprised ¨Chika said, still guiding the second-year student ¨Still, the members of the Student's Council were asked to give the names of associated people. All the girls have been interrogated and there was only two left in that list¨

This actually meant trouble, if he was forced to answer questions then there might be a chance he could say something about the labyrinth, or his newfound powers. What if he does mention them by accident and because of that he would raise suspicion that he might be the culprit. Tetsuya's heart was starting to beat faster. By the time they got there the door to the office opened and Roka came out, almost angry but his face immediately changed after seeing his friend.

¨Hey Tetsuya-chan! ¨ It was almost as if that anger he had when leaving the room was completely gone, he walked past him and opposite to the president ¨Don't forget after-school¨ The Chariot whispered and left the scene, returning to his classroom but earning a frown from Chika who was slightly suspicious about what Roka said.

_¨Next one! ¨_ A voice came from inside the office, it was of an old man.

¨I'll wait here, go¨ She said and sat by one of the chairs near the door.

Tetsuya took a deep breath from his nose and walked inside of the Council's office. Inside there were two officers, one of them writing down on a notebook and the other one looking at one of the files, the one he was looking at had Tetsuya's name on the front.

¨Please take a seat¨ The officer with the file turned the page and waited for the young one. The student obeyed and sat in front of the old men ¨Alright, write down. Name: Tetsuya. Family name: Hayashi. From the town of Inaba¨

¨Done¨ The other policeman said as he put down the pen.

¨Alright mister Hayashi, do not be afraid, you are here to answer some questions. Answer truthfully and you will be back in class in no time¨ The one talking looked at his partner who nodded, he was ready to write ¨Alright: Where were you yesterday after school? ¨

¨Around the city, I was still going around and trying to get my bearings¨ Clearly a lie but if he told the truth then Tetsuya would be done for sure.

¨Were you lost? ¨

¨No, I arrived at Kyoto last weekend and I am still very new around here¨

¨I see. Next question¨ From one of the other files he pulled a picture ¨Do you know this person? ¨ It was Hitomo, the photo used from the file was probably taken recently since there was no noticeable change from the girl. The other student nodded and the officer grabbed another picture from one of the other files, it was Roka but he looked younger in the picture, most likely taken from the previous year ¨What about this one? ¨ Once again he nodded ¨What is your relationship with Oishi Roka? ¨

¨We are friends, he showed me part of Tokyo the other day along with Hitomo¨

¨Do you believe Oishi could be capable of kidnap¨

¨What?! No! ¨ Tetsuya reacted to this, he couldn't believe that Roka was suspicious of kidnapping someone ¨He is friends with Hitomo-kun, the last thing he would do is kidnap! ¨

¨Do _you_ think someone else can be guilty of it? ¨

¨I'm sorry but I don't know much about the people here¨ The Persona-user had his hands beneath the table but his fists were clenched and slightly shaking, afraid that the cops might suspect anything.

¨Alright. You got everything? ¨ A confirmation sound from the other adult put an end to the interrogation ¨Very well, that's all we wanted to know, there is no point asking you more about it since you recently arrived to Kyoto. Your answers seem true as well so there's no point in suspecting you had to do anything about it, neither the Oishi kid. Thank you for your cooperation, now get back to class¨

¨Thank you, sir¨ Tetsuya smiled, he survived the interrogation and not only he was free of suspicion so was Roka. The student bowed and left the office just to be met with Chika once again.

¨So, how did it go? ¨

¨Uh… it went well, the officers got all the answers they needed¨

¨Good, now head back to the classroom¨ Tetsuya started to walk back but ¨Wait¨ He turned to see the president ¨Is there… something you want to say? Something you couldn't say to the policemen? ¨ Unlike before the girl did show some worry on her voice, whether it was for the two missing students or for Tatsuya himself was uncertain ¨You know that you can trust on the council's president…¨

¨I… no, there's nothing¨ The Fool shook his head and headed back to the classroom.

…

The classes were over and some students were already heading back to the dorms, others were still staying around the school, despite the warnings of two students missing. Behind the gym both Tetsuya and Roka met with the latter having his lunch, almost in a hurry.

¨I can't believe they suspected of me! ¨ The Chariot said with his mouth still full ¨Hitomo-chan and I are long-time friends, she would not be in this school if I didn't recommend it to her! ¨ Clearly Roka was angry and the way he was waving his sandwich from side to side made it clear that he was pissed.

¨At least both of us are in the clear now, if we told them about the labyrinth they would definitely mark as culprits or something¨ Tetsuya turned to the side to see some of the students leaving the main building ¨By the way, what did they ask you? ¨

¨Nothing out of the ordinary, what was my relation with Hitomo, if I knew where she went… wait they did ask me about you¨ The black haired immediately turned his head towards the other user ¨But said that I didn't know much so they just leave it there¨ Roka looked up and tilted his head ¨Huh? What are you doing here? ¨

Tetsuya once again looked to his left and saw Chika standing there, her worried look repeated once again, her fists clenched and slightly shaking ¨I don't know what you two are up to but I know you are involved in this¨

¨Huh?!¨ Both Roka and Tetsuya reacted to this and were ready to run away.

¨P-prez, we didn't do anything, we are just two students hanging around here and-¨

¨**Please**, I don't know nor care what you do but promise me that you will bring those girls back¨

¨W-what do you mean, we are no-¨

¨We promise¨ Tetsuya interrupted his friend with a reassuring smile.

¨WHAT?!¨

¨Thank you… I'll be in your debt if you do¨ Chika turned but before leaving a whistle from Roka made her look back at the two boys ¨Yes? ¨

¨Prez, do you really think we had anything to do about Hitomo's disappearance? ¨

¨I would have my doubts about Tetsuya-kun since he is new but something tells me he didn't do it. On your case Roka-kun I know you couldn't do it¨

¨Oh, that is very kind of you, prez¨ The Chariot replied although his tone did sound a bit sarcastic. After that answer the third-year student was still there but this time she had a smile on her face, and surprisingly she giggled ¨What? What's so funny? ¨

¨Nothing, I'll leave you be but for the next time, _try_ to use the school's facilities, this is no place for students to be¨ And finally Chika left, leaving Roka confused for a bit.

¨Alright, it is time. Are you ready? ¨

Roka took a huge bite from his sandwich and threw the wrapping paper away ¨Let's hit the road! ¨ His mouth was still full but that didn't stop him ¨Let's go boss! ¨

…

The blades cut the different Shadows, with flames and wind also flying and destroying everything in their path. Both students celebrated the victory along with the orb that was following them.

¨That's how we do it! ¨ Roka smiled and allowed the sledgehammer to rest on top of his shoulder ¨You know, have you noticed any change in you? Like getting stronger? ¨ Tetsuya looked at his hand and shrugged, he didn't feel anything strange.

¨The Dark Road does seem to empower both of you, aside from giving those powers known as Personas¨ The soul spoke and turned to see something else ¨Look! One of the Shadows is still alive! ¨

The last Shadow was in fact trying to crawl away from the Persona-users but was heavy damaged and its movements were very slow. Tetsuya took a step forward to land the final blow but something stopped him, he couldn't tell what it was but he couldn't move.

_Do not see Shadows as mere enemies, they are in the Dark Road because much like you they are looking for redemption. Extend your helping hand and they shall assist you back._

When the Fool came back from that trance he saw Roka with his weapon already running at the enemy.

¨Take this! ¨

¨No! ¨ The voice of Tetsuya stopped his friend who nearly missed the hit ¨Let me try something¨

¨You serious?!¨

¨Shadow! ¨ The student yelled, getting the attention of the almost-dead monster ¨We are both in this place for many reasons, and I know one of them is redemption¨ After saying that last word the obscure enemy slowly turned to face the dark haired boy ¨I am offering you a second chance, a way to survive this place. Help me and I will take you to redemption¨

There was silence at first, almost as if Tetsuya's words didn't do anything but the Shadow mysteriously reacted, startling Roka in the process.

¨Redemption…¨ An old grumpy voice came out from the insides of this blob as it dropped the knife ¨I remember now…¨ The Shadow started to glow, almost blinding the two students who had to cover their eyes. It was just a few seconds before the light disappeared and in front of them was a strange sight; it was a floating pumpkin wearing a robe and a wizard hat, he had a hand coming out of the dark blue clothing and held a lit lantern ¨I am thou, thou art I. My name is Jack O' Lantern, I will follow you on your journey to achieve redemption¨ The Persona started to dematerialize until it turned into the same orb that the Fool uses to summon Theseus. The moment he tried to grab it the sphere moved at high speed, crashing at the boy's chest and disappearing, making it a part of him.

¨Wait, what did you just do? ¨ The Chariot was slightly confused ¨Did you just absorb that Shadow? ¨

¨I… I think I did¨ The boy looked at his hand, he couldn't describe the feeling he was having but he knew something changed, he clenched it and looked back at his companion ¨Let's go, Hitomo is waiting for us¨ The trio resumed their walk on the labyrinth, following the instructions of the soul that was guiding them towards their missing friend.

* * *

**Next chapter will be interesting as they advance more on the labyrinth and discover the power of Tetsuya as the Fool.**

* * *

**So I've been re-reading the previous chapters and noticed that there were some mistakes here and there so I'll be looking to update them over the weekend.**

**As always you can hop on the Discord server for some chat about Persona, the story and even other games:** **discorddotgg / 7ZUptrJ (of course the dot should be replaced with a . )**

**Hope you enjoyed the chapter, don't forget the always and as I leave I tell you:**

**See you in the next chapter ;)**


	6. Chapter 6

The only thing she was able to hear was herself, sobbing in that dark room. All around her were bones with some flesh still hanging from it but what really had Hitomo scared was the person what was not too far, munching some of the flesh that was still on those bones.

This stranger was wearing the same uniform as the girl but what was truly unsettling was that this person was no other than Hitomo herself, or rather an alternate version of herself whose eyes were bright yellow and with a wicked smile that was usually covered by a piece of meat ¨You should eat some, spending time here gets you hungry sometimes¨ It was pretty much a clone, not only did it replicate the body she also copied the voice ¨Why don't you just give in? Senpai won't come to save you¨

¨No… I know he will… I'm sure of it¨ The missing student was hiding her face between her legs, trying to not let the fake Hitomo see the tears ¨Senpai is probably on his way here along with Tetsuya-kun¨ She wasn't hopeless but there was a tiny part of her that made her believe that no one was coming. The sound of something hitting against metal startled her, it was a bone that was thrown at one of the bars of her cell, she had no way of escaping and even if she tried the fake one might attack her ¨What do you want from me? Who are you?!¨

¨Must I repeat it all over again? ¨ A sigh came from the yellow-eyed as she stood up and walked toward the cage ¨I am you, or rather the part of you that you don't accept. The part that has accepted that redemption is no longer possible and decided to move on a different path¨ She leaned forward to grab one of the bones, it still had some flesh and much like an animal she devoured it ¨And as to what do I want from you? Well, there can be only one Wakamura Hitomo so I might as well take that spot¨

¨You want to replace me? ¨ The real one was looking at the other one in fear, she was trying to back away, only to find herself with the bars behind her ¨No… no I will never accept that¨ But the only response she got was that wicked smile in combination with those amber glowing eyes turned the creature of the labyrinth into a nightmare ¨I will never accept you! ¨

…

¨We've been running for almost two hours, are we getting any closer? ¨

¨The labyrinth is changing as we go, we are definitely getting close to where your friend is¨ The soul saw two more shadows spawning in front of the group ¨Up ahead, enemies! ¨

¨I got it¨ Tetsuya opened his free hand and the summoning orb appeared just to get shattered second later ¨Jack O' Lantern, weaken them! ¨ The Fool ordered and the mysterious Halloween mage appeared, shaking its lantern and casting a curse over the two shadows.

¨Now's my turn! ¨ Roka held his sledgehammer and did a heavy swing at one of their enemies, crushing it making it disappear instantly. With the momentum the Chariot kept running down the hallway, attracting the attention of the lone shadow which didn't see Tetsuya coming from behind and slashing it.

With the Shadows gone the students turned around a corner to find themselves in front of a giant ornate door, red as the walls and the floor. No keyhole in sight and by the looks of it impossible to move with just sheer human strength.

¨Don't you have any other Persona with you that can help us move the door? ¨ The other guy took the sledgehammer behind his neck and allowed his hand from there.

¨Only two, we would need something big or strong. Destroying it would take a lot of time¨

¨It's not impossible to open…¨ The soul got closer to inspect the design and felt some presence on the other side ¨There is no doubt, your friend must be past this door¨ A quick glance at the two students gave the sphere an idea ¨You! ¨ It flew towards Roka ¨Open the door, you are the only one who can do it¨

¨Wait, why me? ¨

¨Because your Persona controls the wind¨

¨Oh… oh right yeah. Stay back, this may not work at all¨ After those words both the soul and Tetsuya stood behind Roka; he made the orb appear in his hand and in a wild fashion he threw it up in the sky just to hit it with the sledgehammer as if he was playing baseball.

¨Achilles, take the door down with your wind¨ The order was given and the Greek warrior used it's spear to channel the power of the wind, then with a thrust at the door a small hurricane was summoned and the door didn't seem to budge ¨Come on… we can't fail now… we have to do this…¨ The strength of the hurricane increased up to the point the hinges were pretty much destroyed and caused the door to fall.

On the other side they found two things, one of them Hitomo, the other was a strange creature that was dragging the student. This monster was a centaur with the upper part being Hitomo but with the glowing yellow eyes, however this one also had four arms, truly a terrifying sight.

¨W-what is that?!¨ Roka focused on the monster but then looked down and saw the young girl ¨HITOMO-CHAN! ¨

¨SENPAI! ¨

¨It seems that there were others coming¨ The centaur turned to face the newcomers and threw the real Hitomo to the side, leaving her out of the fight ¨You will soon find out that this labyrinth will be your tomb! ¨ The fake one had echo in its voice, almost demonic that did nothing but to inflict fear into the Persona users.

¨Get ready, it's going to attack us¨ And thus the monster charged against the two students who were able to dodge, or so they thought at first since they were grabbed by an arm at each side, getting dragged along the centaur's charge ¨Let go off me!¨ Roka was trying to swing with his hammer but the erratic movements from the arms didn't allow him to swing properly, on the other hand Tetsuya was able to do stab at the legs which forced the fake Hitomo to release him as it kept dragging his friend.

¨Boss! ¨ The soul got closer to the Fool who was trying to stand up ¨Are you okay? ¨

¨Y-yeah… how are we going to defeat that thing? ¨ Aside from all the ruckus this enemy was doing, another voice was heard and Tetsuya looked to the side, seeing Hitomo who was also trying to get back on her feet, although with no success ¨Hitomo-chan! ¨ He ran towards the missing girl to check on her ¨Are you alright? ¨

¨I… what is that? ¨ The three of them looked at the centaur who was still dragging Roka around ¨It… it tried to eat me¨

¨I don't know, and I don't know why it looks like you either¨

¨That thing is not me! ¨ Hitomo yelled, not recognizing the monster in the room.

¨Soul, stay here and protect Hitomo-chan¨ The student held the grip on the sword tighter and tried to follow the centaur in hopes of stopping its charge and saving Roka.

With those two busy, the soul and the girl were alone, watching the scene unfold, although the latter started crying and the spirit noticed it ¨Why are you crying? ¨

¨That thing… that thing is not me, it is just a monster using my face¨

¨That is where you are wrong¨ Those words surprised the student who still had tears running down her cheeks ¨Even though it uses your face and you may not like it, that thing is you, or rather the part of you that you don't accept¨

¨That thing said the same but-¨

¨But? ¨ The soul interrupted ¨You have your thoughts, your ideals and even hopes and dreams but deep inside you also know some of those are not possible but decide to eliminate or rather ignore them. What you are seeing there is a Shadow version of yourself¨

¨My… Shadow…¨

¨As long as you don't accept that other part of you it will keep coming back and stronger. The boss and his friend might be able to defeat it now but next time it might appear again and again and again. You are truly the only one who can defeat that thing¨ This left Hitomo thinking, even though the boys were the ones with the power to defeat the fake one there was no doubt that what the orb said made sense, after all that Shadow was the part that Hitomo did not accept about herself.

A loud thud was heard and the creature was laying down, tired and injured. Roka was dizzy from the `trip´ and Tetsuya stood in front of the monster, ready to strike it down.

¨Strike me down and I will come back stronger than ever¨ The Fool frowned and lifted his sword for one last strike but…

¨No! ¨ Hitomo stood up and ran towards Tetsuya, holding his arm so he wouldn't kill the Shadow ¨Don't, it won't solve anything… it is my battle after all¨ The student looked at the downed centaur, the fake Hitomo looking back at the real one ¨Maybe I was wrong, not accepting you was pretty much running away from the truth. While I wanted to stay positive that I was going to get rescue I also needed to accept that the other option could happen. Redemption… that's what you said¨ The redhead nodded to her own words ¨I don't want to stray away from that, I will accept the chances of failure but I will not let it happen! ¨

¨So you accept it…¨ The Shadow replied and once again Hitomo nodded ¨Very well, let us form the contract…¨

¨My redemption will be-¨ The student was cut off mid-sentence as she felt a horrible pain, a headache that she never felt before and made her kneel. It was like someone was stabbing her brain repeatedly ¨What… is this?!¨

¨You have accepted the other part of you in hopes of achieving redemption. I am thou, thou art I. I lend you my strength, use it wisely. ¨ The creature started to vanish and an orb appeared in front of Hitomo, it was light yellow and the moment she touched it the sphere disappeared.

¨Thanks… Hippolyta¨ With the help of Tetsuya she was able to stand back up only to look to her left and see the other person in the room. A smile was starting to form as she ran towards him ¨Senpai! ¨

¨Hi-Hitomo-chan! ¨ They hugged, she was crying and Roka tried to contain himself.

From far away Tetsuya and the soul were looking at the two of them, they succeeded on their mission and gained a possible new ally ¨So that thing… was that Hitomo too? ¨

¨It was her Shadow, the part of her that she did not accept. It became strong enough to be a powerful enemy and even threaten her life¨

¨Does that mean that Roka faced a Shadow as well? ¨

¨Not necessarily, accepting oneself is a key factor. Should he deny back then… well chances are it would be possible for a Shadow version of himself to appear in that case¨ The soul turned to look at the Fool ¨Even you could've faced a Shadow of you¨ Tetsuya's ears were ringing at that point, his knees felt weak and the body was not able to go on any further ¨Boss? ¨ The Fool closed his eyes and felt him falling to the ground ¨Boss! ¨

…

His body hit against something and this made him wake up, he was still drowsy and looked all around but to his surprise he wasn't in the labyrinth, it was that mysterious blue bar that he kept returning in his dreams.

¨W-what? How did I get here? ¨

¨Welcome back, Fool¨ Silvia greeted him. In the counter there were many things: a book, a letter with a key and an empty glass ¨I am afraid my master is not available this time but I will be glad to be of assistance today¨ Tetsuya looked down at the items but something caught his attention. Behind him there was something different from his last visit, one of the shadows that was playing pool against another shadow was finally revealed, it was Roka who was talking to the other player whose identity was still a mystery. However, his friend did not notice the presence of the dark haired.

¨I thought I was the only one with access to this place¨

¨That is true, however those who you form a bond with will appear in the Velvet Room. Call it a progress of your path, pay no attention to them for I have something more important to you¨ She opened the book, most of the pages were blank ¨This is the Persona Compendium, throughout your journey you will find many Personas as you've already experienced. If you require I am able to summon those that you found, for a price¨

¨Interesting¨ Tetsuya grabbed the book and went through the different pages, only the first ones were filled with information.

¨On that topic¨ Silvia grabbed the glass that was to the side ¨The Velvet Room offers a service to those who get access to it. The ability to fuse Personas and to _destroy_ them¨ The way she said destroy sounded differently, almost sultry in its tone ¨Once again for the right price I can help you with that, new combinations of Personas will help you progress further as you encounter more dangerous enemies¨ From behind her she grabbed one of the bottles and poured the dark red liquid in the glass.

¨I see¨ He then picked up the key and the letter, both had the seal of the Velvet Room ¨What are these for then? ¨

¨The letter is our invitation to you, as you are now a member of this club. From now on if you need our services you can find us in many places, using the key to enter in this establishment¨

¨How do I know where to find you? ¨

¨You will know when you see it, Fool¨ The assistant gave the full glass to Tetsuya ¨To this new partnership¨

_I am thou, thou art I… Thou hast acquired a new vow._

_It shall open a path and break the chains from the past._

_With the birth of the High Priestess Persona, you acquired new power that will lead to redemption._

* * *

**We got to the part of the story where the Velvet Room mechanics appear lol. With this a new Persona user joins the team but first they'll have to drag Tetsuya out of the labyrinth. **

**Aside from that there won't be much battle next episode, probably not a single one but pretty much the end of the day.**

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed the chapter and I also hope you could answer me this: What would be a good song for a battle theme?**

**As we quesiton that I bid farewell but not before posting this: discorddotgg / 7ZUptrJ (of course the dot should be replaced with a ****. ) **

**Now yes, this was Tourvelix and as I leave:**

**See you in the next chapter ;)**


	7. Chapter 7

As his mind slowly faded from the Velvet Room Tetsuya returned to the real world only to be met with a water splash on his face.

¨What?¨ He wiped the water from his eyes and looked at the two people on front of him, both Roka and Hitomo. The three of them were in a park and the Fool was laying on a bench ¨Where are we?¨

¨We're at a park, we had to drag you out of the labyrinth because you fell unconscious and the Shadows were coming¨

¨Is everyone alright?¨ Tetsuya asked as he slowly started to sit on the bench ¨Hitomo, how are you feeling?¨

¨I'm tired, I can still go on but I really want to take a shower and get back to bed¨ The redhead looked down, biting her lip ¨I… thank you, Tetsuya-kun. Without you or senpai I don't think I could've lived there for much longer¨

¨What matters is that you are safe, that we all escaped and just like us you got a new power!¨ Roka smiled as he placed a hand on her shoulder ¨I am glad that you are back¨ He then turned to face his friend who grabbed his backpack ¨However not all are great news, you see…¨ From his own bag he pulled a broken stick, at first Tetsuya couldn't understand what it was until the Chariot pulled the metal head of the sledgehammer ¨Our weapons broke, apparently the soul said that they ran out of vital energy so we can't summon them or whatever, we are going to need new weapons¨

¨New weapons…¨ Hitomo whispered, placing a finger on her chin.

¨There are still some things we need to discuss. People will ask Hitomo-chan where she was and stuff like that. We can't let people find out about our secret either¨

¨What about the labyrinth?¨

¨We will have to return there eventually because-¨

¨You can't be serious! Tetsuya-chan we found what we were looking for, there's no point in going back there¨

¨That labyrinth is a threat; we have to find a way to close it. If we don't then more people might get kidnapped¨ Tetsuya stood up, letting his backpack hang from one of his shoulders ¨We are the only ones who can stop whatever is causing this. Let's go, it's getting late¨

The trio started to go back to the dorms, there were few people on the streets but surprisingly they saw more police patrols walking around.

¨You know Tetsuya…¨ Roka started speaking, turning his head at the dark haired ¨You were the first one who got a Persona and you got more experience than us so I thought that it would be a nice idea to name you the leader of this group. Besides you suggested to go back¨

¨What?¨

¨Oh yeah¨ Hitomo nodded, agreeing with the idea that her senpai suggested ¨You were able to handle against the Shadows and even my other self, I can take orders well so just tell me what I need to do in combat and I will follow¨

¨Same… although we need to get some new…¨ Roka saw a police officer walking nearby and had to change the subject immediately¨…materials for the school trip, we can't go empty handed¨

¨I think I have an idea but let's do it tomorrow, yes?¨ Hitomo suggested to which the rest did agree.

By the time they got to the dorm where the girl resided they split up, Roka stayed with her while Tetsuya kept walking back to his own. There were some students which were returning to the dorms as well, talking about their day at the school and even about the missing girls, it did seem that the rumor of Hitomo missing did spread out.

Once he arrived the usual scene was there, lots of students all over the main floor. Tetsuya felt tired already and didn't wanted to hear any rumors or talk to anyone else so he immediately headed for his room. ¨I need some rest¨ He whispered to himself and changed into his pajamas, falling to the bed and looking at his phone; he expected to fall asleep fast but something kept him awake, it was the knocking on his door that made him leave the comfortable bed.

¨Hey, Tetsuya do you have a minute?¨ The person on the other side was no other than Roka.

The Fool opened the door and saw that his friend still had the uniform and bag, probably just arrived from the other dorms ¨Sorry I'm bothering you this late, had to make sure Hitomo-chan was safe¨ Roka was silent for a moment ¨I know I haven't said this before but thanks for helping me with the labyrinth thing, even though I have a Persona I think you played a big part into this so… yeah, thanks for that¨

¨Is she safe?¨

¨Arrived at her dorm with no problems but it seems she will have a long talk at school tomorrow with the police and probably teachers or the student council. As for us we should meet again, although I think the Big Bang Burger near the school should do as I want Hitomo-chan to come as well¨ He looked down and saw that his friend was in his pajamas ¨Did I wake you up?¨

¨What? Oh no no, don't worry I was still awake but sure, we'll meet after school¨

¨Then it's a deal, oh also give me your phone number, that way we'll easily communicate¨ Tetsuya gave Roka his number and so did the Chariot ¨Alright, we'll be in touch or well, tomorrow morning. Good night¨

\- April 10th –

A new day started and the morning was pretty much the same as usual, Tetsuya met up with Roka and now with Hitomo's presence as well, however the moment she arrived at the school some police officers wanted to ask her some questions about the disappearance but thankfully both boys were spared as they were told to head to their respective classrooms. There was no doubt that Hitomo reappearing after the rumors of her going missing generated a lot of talk in the hallways.

Eventually lunchtime arrived and Tetsuya was in his classroom with the cheap breakfast he bought, unfortunately killing Shadows was not very lucrative and thought about getting a part time job eventually.

¨Tetsuya-kun?¨ He wasn't paying attention to his surroundings until he heard his voice and when he turned the student saw the council president along with pretty much all the students in the classroom looking at her ¨Do you have a moment?¨ He nodded ¨Good, let's go to the council's room, we'll have more privacy there¨ It was a mystery why Chika wanted to talk to Tetsuya even more why she wanted a more private talk¨

The eyes of many students were fixed on them as they walked to the council's room and closed the door behind.

¨I will go to the point due to the time that we have¨ Chika sat in one of the chairs ¨It is certain that Wakamura Hitomo disappeared yesterday and she returned today with no injuries or anything of the likes, the police interrogated her and according to her responses she fell asleep on a bus and had no easy way of returning. I have no reason to believe she is lying for I am glad she is in fact safe¨ The president looked at Tetsuya, her lips now forming a smile ¨I don't know what you or Roka-kun did but I have to say thank you, for… whatever you did¨

¨I…¨ He nodded ¨We did what was right, we found Hitomo-chan and brought her back to her dorms, that's all we did¨

But Chika just smiled, almost as if she didn't believe what Tetsuya said ¨I am sure you did, but I am not here to question your methods, it was just to say thank you and if you ever need a favor, _anything_ just tell me and I will be glad to help. Now go, lunch break is not going to last much longer¨

¨Understood¨ The Fool turned but before opening the door he stood there, slightly turning his head to look back at Chika ¨President I do have a question¨ She tilted her head ¨Why do you think Roka and I are innocent? Hitomo said she fell asleep yet you don't sound too certain that she told the truth, and now you are doing the same with me¨

¨I thought it was obvious. Roka and Hitomo are long-time friends, they are like brother and sister who keep out for each other, especially after what happened to them¨ This caught the boy's attention ¨There is no way I could accuse him of something like kidnapping. Now you are a different case, someone who came from a distant town and is new to the city who became friends with those two students… yet you volunteered to look for her and call it female instinct but something tells me you are not here to cause trouble¨

¨Yeah… you're right. Thanks president¨ Tetsuya finally opened the door and headed back to the classroom but on his way he noticed that he got new messages on his phone, all of them belonged to Roka:

ORoka: Hey, there's people talking on the hallways that the prez called you to the council's office. Is that true?

Me: Yeah, she wanted to talk about Hitomo, basically that she is safe as well as saying thank you. If we ever needed something she'll return the favor.

ORoka: The student's council president owing us a favor? I am sure we can pull something from that. Did she ask anything about the labyrinth?

Me: Nothing at all, but she knows that Hitomo's excuse to the police was not entirely truth and also has some suspicion but doesn't seem like the type of person who would sell us out.

ORoka: I wouldn't call the prez a person to be trusted but I'll follow your instinct then. You still meeting me and the kouhai after school?

Me: Count on it.

ORoka: Nice, we'll see you there.

And so the rest of the day went smoothly, the fact that they didn't go to the labyrinth that same day gave the students a day to relax, however if they wanted to take on that same place again they would have to get some new weapons and even better equipment. As the hours passed so did all the periods that finished, the students were wandering around but no sign of the other two Persona-users so the Fool thought that they were already at the meeting spot.

A walk in that direction and he was right as both Roka and Hitomo were already sitting outside with a couple of drinks. The Chariot waved at Tetsuya.

¨Hey what kept you from coming? The prez wanted to talk to you again?¨

¨No, there was a lot of people by the school's entrance, was stuck there for a few minutes¨

¨Ah, I see. Oh by the way I gave Hitomo-chan your phone number, hope you don't mind¨ Tetsuya shook his head ¨Alright now that we three are here I guess we can discuss our next move¨

¨Before we do that I want to say something to our leader¨ Hitomo interrupted the conversation and turned towards the Fool ¨I know I said this before but I want to repeat it again: Thank you for saving me yesterday, if neither you or senpai showed up I would not be here talking to any of you. No matter what happens now I will follow your orders and help with this labyrinth, we must not let any more people to get kidnapped!¨ Tetsuya saw Hitomo's resolve, she was determined to help both him and Roka with her newfound power.

_I am thou, thou art I… Thou hast acquired a new vow._

_It shall open a path and break the chains from the past._

_With the birth of the Hermit Persona, you acquired new power that will lead to redemption._

¨With that done¨ Roka interrupted ¨We need to find a way to close the labyrinth, we don't know if there is going to be another kidnapping and if there is _when_¨

¨Yeah but we can't go back in without weapons or better gear¨

¨I have an idea for that¨ The two boys turned at the third student ¨There is a forge not too far, the man there makes weapons and armor, mostly for decoration but from what I've heard they are usable¨

¨Then it's decided, tomorrow we'll check on that forge¨ Tetsuya looked at one person that was looking back at him in the distance but he paid no attention, instead he kept focusing at the two other students ¨Perhaps we should talk about the labyrinth now, address at what we are facing¨

¨We should talk to the soul when we have the chance, it would know more about that place¨ Roka laid back on his chair ¨Do you think there are other people who can summon their Personas?¨

¨I don't know¨ Tetsuya remembered the talk he had back at the Velvet Room, he wasn't the first Fool and probably not the first one who summoned a Persona.

They remained silent for a minute before Hitomo turned, looking at someone who was now close and definitely looking at the trio ¨Yes? May we help you with something?¨

¨I found you, all three of you!¨ It was a girl around their age with long brown hair and blue eyes, almost outerwordly. She wore the school's uniform but surprisingly there were some red stains in some parts which caught the attention of the three of them.

¨Excuse me, who are you?¨

¨I thought you would recognize me¨ But none said anything, they just looked at each other ¨Boss, tell them who I am!¨

¨Wait a minute, that voice…¨

¨That energy…¨

¨Boss?¨ Tetsuya tilted his head, there was only one person (or rather thing) that would call him that ¨You… you are…¨

* * *

**And with that Tetsuya formed a new contract with someone, got the favor from the president and then this new person appeared, but who is she excatly?**

**Whoever she is I am sure she does have some answers for the group.**

* * *

**With this chapter done I bid farewell for this year. No more Persona chapters in 2019 (no more chapters for anything this year to be honest) since I am taking vacations and will not return until February, however I will be able to answer reviews, PM, anything so don't forget to also follow and fav the story.**

**This is the last one of the year, I promise: discorddotgg / 7ZUptrJ (of course the dot should be replaced with a ****. ) Chances are I'll make a new invite next year so I can replace the link.**

**Hope you enjoyed the chapter, there's more coming next year with more fights, party members, Personas and mystery because that is one thing that I love about the game. **

**This was Tourvelix to remind you that P5Royal will be released march next year but above else, Merry Christmas and a happy new year, I bid farewell and as always:**

**See you in the next chapter ;)**


	8. Chapter 8

¨You… you are… that soul¨ Tetsuya hesitated at first, the fact that the thing was not in its usual form made this conversation a little uneasy, especially since everyone was able to see a person with red stains on their clothes that resembled blood.

¨I do have a name! ¨ The other three were expecting an answer but the new girl just looked sad ¨I… I still can't remember it¨

¨That doesn't matter right now, what matters is how you got here¨ It was Roka who spoke this time, trying to get answers out of this confusion.

¨Oh it's simple, I walked through the door, just like you people did¨ The soul said with a chirpy tone.

¨I think senpai means _how_ you got a body, if you don't mind us answering¨ Hitomo asked, looking both at Roka and Tetsuya before turning her eyes back at the newcomer

¨Well…¨ She placed a finger on her chin ¨The labyrinth had many visitors many years it seems, I found one that was dressing as Hitomo-san and decided to use it. Then I walked out and came out like this…¨ There was a pause, they could see that the soul was not feeling that well ¨Ugh… keeping this form takes so much energy. Might as well turn back¨

¨What?! NO! ¨ The group stood up immediately, getting the attention from nearby students ¨Let's go somewhere less crowded¨

They had to move fast and away from any eye contact because if any student would spot a sort-of normal girl turn into a floating orb then the amount of reactions in that place would be massive and they would definitely try to record or even take pictures of it. Fortunately for them the amount of people was very scarce as they were getting away from the fast food area. They found themselves on an empty park and decided to rest there, making sure that no one was nearby.

¨Alright, you can turn into that thing again, there's no one around¨

¨I can do something similar! ¨ The soul said and smoke started to surround her. After a few seconds the smoke dissipated and the girl that was in front of them disappeared, or rather turned into something different ¨Here we go¨

¨You… uh…¨ The three of them looked down at the ground in front and then at each other ¨You turned into a rabbit? ¨

In front of them was a small and cute rabbit the size of their palms ¨Yes! Taking a human form was taxing already but as a rabbit I don't need to worry. Besides a small animal won't attract as much attention, right? ¨

¨That is… true¨ Tetsuya said, kneeling opening his hand so the rabbit could jump ¨Do you want us to take you to the labyrinth? ¨

¨What?! No! I came here to warn you about that¨ The cheerful voice of the rabbit changed to a more serious tone ¨You three have stirred the labyrinth's owner, it is going to make a move soon¨

¨How soon? ¨ I'd reckon we have around two weeks before it happens¨

¨Yeah but without weapons or supplies we aren't going to get too far¨ Roka remembered that all of them were unarmed when it came to combat.

¨Well there was the forge that I mentioned…¨

¨But can we really trust it? Like you said it was for decorations but usable¨ The leader did remember but wasn't sure how long would those things last, especially if they were going to be fighting constantly ¨We need a reliable place to get our gear, and asking the smith in the forge to make us _real_ weapons is going to look suspi-¨

¨I got it! ¨ Roka said with enthusiasm in his voice ¨I remember someone said there is a shop in town, during the day it's a regular supermarket shop but during the night it sells special items such as weapons armor and the likes¨ He smiled ¨So what do you say? We should go look into it¨

¨I suppose it won't hurt looking into but…¨ The Hermit was not too keen on going with that idea, fortunately it was two options to explore ¨What are we going to do with her… uh… it? ¨

¨Well if you can't remember your name I suppose we can give you one? How about…¨ Roka looked around, Hitomo was searching for names on her phone, Tetsuya on the other hand…

¨Letho¨

¨What? ¨

¨We'll call her Letho¨ Tetsuya said with a smile ¨How does that sound? ¨

¨Mh, I can't remember my name and probably wasn't the one I had but if it's easier for the boss to remember then I'll use it¨

¨Very well! ¨ Roka placed a hand around Tetsuya and Hitomo ¨Letho-chan joins Hitomo-chan and Tetsuya-chan¨

¨Can you not use chan with me? ¨ Roka's face changed when the leader grabbed his arm and took a step to the side.

¨Is kun alright then? ¨

¨Just Tetsuya¨

¨Tetsuya-san! ¨ But the Fool sighed ¨Oh speaking of, what are we going to do with Letho-chan then? ¨

¨Oh, that is simple¨ The rabbit jumped to Tetsuya's shoulder and then into his bag; after trying to find her way out again she only poked the head out ¨Since I am technically not a living being I don't need oxygen, food or water¨

¨Eh, wait, why should I bring you with me? ¨

¨Isn't it obvious? You are the leader; you take care of the group¨

¨I suppose…¨

¨It's getting late¨ The girl looked at the sky ¨We should leave everything for tomorrow¨

¨I'll go to this shop and see what's all about¨ Tetsuya suggested and his friend immediately started searching in his pockets.

¨Here¨ He gave him some money, although not a lot ¨If you do find that they are selling gear there buy something, yes? ¨

¨Alright I guess that settles it, let's go back to the dorms, we'll talk over the phone¨

With that the group went to their respective dorms. As the night was getting closer and the sky darkened, the leader was already changed into a more civilian outfit, he had a dark blue jacket and a white shirt underneath, he was carrying a small backpack that had very few items inside, but most importantly Letho who decided to join him in his mission for the night. After asking Roka for directions he went to the commercial district, on his way he found very few students but mostly adults who were already going to work or leaving.

¨Boss, do you think there will be weapons for you all in that shop? ¨

¨I don't know, that's why I'm going there¨ He looked slightly to the side and noticed the white ears from the rabbit ¨The dorms do not allow pets so if anyone sees or even hears you then I will be in trouble so try to remain as invisible as possible¨

¨No problem boss! ¨ Letho saluted with her tiny rabbit paw although the leader pushed her head into the bag again ¨Hey! I'm fragile¨

¨Here we are¨

What Roka painted as a place that sells gear it looked like a normal supermarket except that the doors were closed, surprisingly there was still some staff inside. Tetsuya got closer and knocked at the glass, the man behind the counter yelled at someone else that was inside, however the Fool recognized who it was the moment he got closer to the door and opened a small window to talk.

His `tough kid´ look disappeared the moment he was wearing the uniform of the supermarket, however his face did show some annoyance, he had a mop in his right hand, around his neck were a pair of headphones which Tetsuya could hear was some very loud music.

¨Yeah? Wait, have I've seen you before? ¨ The young person looked Tetsuya up and down but could not recognize him.

¨Kazushige-senpai? ¨ The moment he heard that he immediately turned around to look at the man behind the counter and then back at Tetsuya ¨We met a few days ago at the dorms, I'm the student from I-¨

¨Shut up¨ he immediately silenced the Fool ¨I remember you… what are you doing here? ¨

¨I was told that at night the supermarket sold weapons and such¨

The look on the council member was unnatural, almost as if Tetsuya wasn't supposed to know that ¨Who told you? ¨

¨Uh… I heard it on the streets that at night this place sold unusual items to the public¨

¨I see¨ He took another look at the old man ¨Listen, I don't know where you heard it or who told you but this is no place for a guy like you. Do yourself a favor and don't come here, oh yeah… don't even tell others that I work here¨

¨What? Why? I came here to buy-¨

¨I know what you came here for! ¨ Kazushige raised his voice but trying not to draw any unnecessary attention ¨Look, this is not the time nor place to talk. If the president sent you tell her we don't sell anything like that, alright? ¨

¨Yuko, is there a problem? ¨

¨Eh, nothing to worry uncle, just a student looking for directions¨ His angered look changed to a face that the boy outside did not expect to see, a happy one but that lasted very few seconds before the council member looked back at him, his anger returned ¨Look, I don't know what you want those things for but if you want some answers go to the shop to the left before night, and of course, do not tell anyone, not even the president¨ He pointed with his thumb at a red colored shop that was completely closed ¨Now scram!¨ The employee closed the window and went back to talk to his uncle before continuing to clean the floor.

Tetsuya was curious, he looked at the shop near the supermarket, the walls were red and had many mannequins by the window, all of them were wearing military uniforms, including a samurai armor. The name of the shop was lit on with neon tubes despite not being open.

¨The Soldier's Specialty! ¨ Tetsuya whispered and noticed how Letho left the bag, apparently she hid the moment he knocked at the supermarket's door.

¨Seems that you found a place to get your gear, we'll look into it tomorrow¨

¨Yeah, let's go back to the dorms¨ With a smile on his face Tetsuya turned around and started to walk back to the dorms.

¨Say… mind if I ask a favor? ¨ Letho looked at the Fool, her ears twitching.

¨Depends, what is it? ¨

¨Since you all got your personas and are willing to take the labyrinth down maybe you can help me. Help me remember who I am as well as giving me back a life¨ She looked at the different buildings around them ¨I am willing to bet life in this country changed over many years¨

¨Oh yeah… do you know what an ice cream is? ¨

¨No, but now I am curious to try it, maybe tomorr- Watch out! ¨ Letho cried out as she hid inside of the bag.

Tetsuya couldn't react in time and crashed against another person, this was another boy who dropped a lot of pictures. Even though Tetsuya did not fall the other kid did; he was wearing a school uniform but it was different from the Fool's, he had a dark blue jacket with red accents and buttons.

¨I'm sorry¨ The stranger said, trying to get back up.

¨No, it's alright, I didn't see you¨ Tetsuya kneeled to grab the bag that this student dropped but noticed something off, he had lots of photos from the shrine he and the other persona users visited. He then gave them back to the stranger ¨Here you go¨ There was a moment of pause before the leader spoke again ¨Just wondering, are you a photographer? ¨

¨Huh? Oh, because of the photos? No, I am… what you could call an investigator¨

¨A detective? ¨

¨An amateur investigator, mind you. I suppose you don't go to Sakura School. I'm Sekien¨

¨Tetsuya, I go to Sagano. Mind telling me what the photos are for¨

¨Oh, these? ¨ He pulled the same ones from his bag and showed them to the dark haired ¨There's something odd at going around the city and the rumors are that the shrines are key for it¨

¨I haven't seen many people looking at the shrines¨

¨Well… it's more of an online rumor and I'm trying to find an answer to it¨

¨If that's the case then good luck¨ Tetsuya gave him the pictures back.

¨Anyway sorry for crashing into you but now I must get home, it's getting late¨ Sekien ran away, holding his bag close and making sure not to fall again.

¨Rumors regarding the shrines¨ Letho came out of the bag and looked at the leader ¨Could it be that more people know about the labyrinth? ¨

¨Don't know, but let's just call it a day¨

After exploring for some more minutes Tetsuya decided to return to the dorms. When he got to his room to check messages he noticed that he was added to a group and made administrator, the only other members were Roka and Hitomo.

_ORoka: You think he is okay?_

_WaTomo: I think so; you gave him the right address?_

_ORoka: Of course I did._

_Me: I'm here_

_WaTomo: Have you found something?_

_ORoka: Have you got us some cool weapons?_

_ORoka: Or guns?_

_ORoka: Perhaps some armor?_

_Me: No luck but I was told to visit the store near the supermarket, apparently they might sell what we need. I'll go tomorrow after classes._

_WaTomo: Remind me to give you some money as well._

_WaTomo: I'm going to bed, gn!_

_ORoka: Night_

¨Your room seems comfortable¨ Letho said, resting on the bed ¨This is better than the labyrinth already¨

¨How was it over there? ¨

¨After seeing Shadows everywhere I was barely able to rest, if you could call what I was doing resting¨ The rabbit looked at the Fool ¨So you never answered me: Are you and the rest willing to help me recover my identity and get me a proper body? ¨

¨You can count on us! ¨

Letho released a happy squeal ¨That's what I wanted to hear… perhaps I can teach you people some tricks from my time, let's call this our pact, shall we? ¨ Tetsuya nodded.

_I am thou, thou art I… Thou hast acquired a new vow._

_It shall open a path and break the chains from the past._

_With the birth of the Hierophant Persona, you acquired new power that will lead to redemption._

¨Now it's time to go to bed, you have a weapon store to look into¨

* * *

**Everyone will be asking: Wasn't there a chapter 8 before?**

**The answer would be yes, I made a chapter for Christmas but the more I read it after I posted it the less I liked it, some characters acting differently from what they acted and some other things that wouldn't make sense in the future. So I deleted it and changed how it went.**

**So after months of not writing this story I am back with a new chapter, Tetsuya making a new bond and now Letho will act as the mascot of this group/story.**

**Here's a little story, back in January I had the idea to revive a Persona RP a friend made, worked on a new story, characters and a system for it to work on an RP setting. I took inspiration from this story but unfortunately while the RP started and it worked for a bit that project is on hiatus, so for that matter I decided to use the characters I made there and see how would they work in Path of Redemption and some of them do work.**

**And that's it for today, I'll try to keep both stories that I'm writing active but for now I have to go for an exam but not before I drop this** **discorddotgg / 7ZUptrJ (of course the dot should be replaced with a . )**

**Hope you enjoed the chapter, don't forget to follow, fav, review, I'll be reading PMs and even be on Discord. Until then:**

**See you in the next chapter ;)**


	9. Chapter 9

_\- April 11th -_

Thursday arrived and there was movement outside already, the students leaving the dorms and Tetsuya just waking up to the sun entering through the curtains.

¨Hey, you should wake up¨ A white-furred tail was brushing the Fool's nose, prompting him to open his eyes and push the animal away ¨Are you feeling alright?¨ Tetsuya was rubbing his shoulder and trying to move his arm, he then looked at Letho and nodded ¨Good, because your artifact has been making weird things some minutes ago¨

The student turned to see that it was his phone and the rabbit was right, there were some messages from the chat group.

¨What did your friends say?¨

¨They told me to go directly to school, that they are going to do something before class¨

¨Aren't you all going to check on that shop you found yesterday¨

¨Yeah but that is after class¨ Tetsuya said and put the phone on the desk as he went to grab his uniform from the closet ¨Any progress on remembering your name?¨

¨Sadly no, I haven't left your room the entire night¨ Letho looked at the window while the Persona-user was changing clothes, she saw all the students wearing the same uniform ¨Do you think I'll be able to attend your school once I get a proper body?¨

¨Don't know, if we are being technical you don't appear in any record so validating your existence would be a bit complicated¨ Tetsuya finished fixing his tie and looked himself at the small mirror in the bathroom ¨Is there anything you remember about your past?¨

¨I… not really, other than remembering Clan Oda¨

¨So there is a chance that you met _the_ Nobunaga?¨ He tilted his head, looking at the rabbit from around the corner.

¨Perhaps, maybe the labyrinth will have answers…¨ She paused ¨Do you think there are other people like you and the others? With those powers I mean¨ In his head a voice could be heard, a memory from his arrival at the city, it was that long nosed man.

¨_This is a path you will not walk alone, there will be others who will aid you in this quest but there will be others who will try to stop you¨_

¨Maybe¨ When he was done with the uniform he grabbed his bag and Letho immediately jumped from the bed to the desk and then to Tetsuya's shoulder just so she could then hide inside of the bag ¨If you are going with me then you should remain silent and out of anyone's sight¨

¨Don't worry, I know how to remain invisible¨

…

It was a quiet day, with no plans on going to the labyrinth for now the party remained in contact through the group chat.

¨Does anyone have the answer to this exercise?¨ The teacher had the chalk in her hand and pointed at the blackboard. Tetsuya was about to raise his hand but someone else did it faster ¨Ah, Minako was it? Please take the stage¨ She said with a little of humor in her voice.

The Fool looked at this girl, she looked very tidy, her uniform didn't have a single wrinkle in it, she had a small silver button near the lapel of the jacket with the emblem of the school; a golden blonde beauty mixed with blue eyes, she would definitely attract the attention of everyone in the room. Tetsuya looked at the girl's desk and was impressed how clean and organized it was, perhaps she was some honor student.

¨Let's see¨ The teacher looked at the whole procedure and then the result ¨Correct, as expected of one of our best students!¨ She said happily and took the chalk from Minako's hand who then returned to her seat in silence, writing down some things in her notebook.

¨Best student?¨ Letho's voice was muffled inside of the bag which was to the side of Tetsuya ¨Maybe you should stick with her and you'll learn new things¨

As the teacher was writing she stopped and looked at the students ¨Did anyone say something?¨ But there was no response, instead of that Tetsuya lightly kicked his bag, warning the rabbit to remain quiet ¨If you have any questions do not hesitate to ask!¨

…

Once the classes were over, Tetsuya went to the school's entrance and found himself with Hitomo who waved at him as he got closer.

¨Where's Roka?¨

¨Senpai said he had something to do¨

¨So it's the two of us?¨ Tetsuya felt some movement in his bag ¨Well, three¨

She giggled ¨So it seems, oh by the way¨ From inside of her bag she pulled some money and gave it to the team leader ¨The reason why senpai and I weren't in the morning is because he walked me to one of the shops I work at, they couldn't give me the money last time so I went to get my paycheck¨

¨Are you sure? I mean it's your money¨

¨And I want you to have it, senpai. We can't go further into that place with no gear so I trust you that task¨

¨Great, let's go then¨

The two of them walked around the city, Letho came from inside of the bag and was looking at everything surrounding her, she was on that part of the district during the night and seeing it while the sun still shone over their heads was pleasant.

¨So what do you remember of your life, Letho-chan?¨ Hitomo looked at the rabbit

¨I asked her already but she said she doesn't remember anything¨

¨And the labyrinth might solve that?¨

¨Maybe¨ He shrugged ¨There are still things that we don't know about the place¨

¨So how did you two meet?¨

¨Roka fell by me at the start of the week and I held his umbrella¨

¨Is that true?¨ Letho turned to the girl.

¨I told senpai not to run on the rain that day and well, he fell. Maybe it was destiny that we all met that day?¨

¨Given how Roka has been acting ever since we met I doubt it would be the first time he fell¨

¨What are you implying?¨ But Tetsuya just looked away and whistled, earning a slight push from Hitomo ¨Come on! He's not that stupid¨

¨You're not denying a slight chance of it¨ The leader then looked forward and saw the weapon shop, the lights inside were on ¨Hey, let's get in there¨

The door was locked but with a doorbell to the side, Tetsuya pressed it and they could hear a ringing inside which led to another one by the front door, unlocking it.

Once inside they noticed that it was like an armory, full of weapons, protective gear and the likes all around them and locked behind cages. From behind the counter was the same man that was the previous day on the supermarket.

¨Welcome to The Soldier's Specialty! Uh… aren't you a bit young to be in this type of store?¨ The old man turned to Tetsuya ¨Wait I remember your face, you showed up at the supermarket yesterday night¨

¨Y-yeah… that was me¨ The leader walked to the counter ¨I'm here to buy weapons¨

¨Now hold on, by the look on your faces and your uniforms I believe you are students at one of the schools around here. So why people of your age want weapons?¨ He frowned ¨You are not planning to do anything evil with them, right?¨

Tetsuya was going to say something but he didn't have the courage to do it, instead it was Hitomo who stepped forward ¨We need the weapons to help a friend who is in trouble, we fear she might be in danger¨

¨So you are acting as some kind of… vigilantes?¨ The owner shook his head and sighed ¨Frankly after what happened in Tokyo with those… uh… thieves or something, everyone is getting interested in being the allies of justice or whatever. Well, I'm not going to be digging much but don't expect me to give you some of the good hardware, yes? That being said, what do you need?¨

It took them a bit of time to get everything they needed but eventually the left the shop. Hitomo was looking at her arms and trying to move them, with a smile on her face she nodded.

¨There we go, it's a little uncomfortable but the armor fits under the uniform, and the stuff we got should be enough to fight against those Shadows¨ She says and looks at Tetsuya ¨Are you alright, senpai?¨ Hitomo turned her head in the same direction her friend was looking at but it was the wall of another shop ¨Senpai?¨

The Fool snapped back and looked back at her teammate ¨Yes?¨

¨I was asking if you are alright, something got your attention?¨

¨No… not really, I was thinking about the labyrinth¨

¨Well I suppose we are ready to go again, maybe we can arrange tomorrow to investigate it¨ The girl was already excited about going back there but before she could say any other word she looked at her phone and gasped ¨Oh! I need to leave now, my shift begins shortly. I'll leave you to give Roka senpai the last of the gear¨

¨I will, don't worry¨ Tetsuya waved at Hitomo who was going to a different part of the city.

However, Tetsuya was not only thinking about the labyrinth but he saw something when they left the shop. It was a strange blue door, almost transparent, as he got closer the student could hear the sound of music, a familiar tune from a place outside of the realm of reality. The wooden door had a lot of gold-tinted glass and he could see a lot of people inside. Before he tried to open it he felt something cold and small in his hand, it was the key that the assistant gave him the other day.

With no more doubts about what he was going to do he placed the key inside of the empty keyhole and turned it, unlocking the door and then proceeded to go inside.

Everything felt different yet familiar. The sounds of the city streets were replaced by the tune he heard before; the same bar with the same inhabitants only this time some of the shadows of the place were revealed. Hitomo was by the pool table playing with Roka and there was also Letho who was moving around the counter and stopping by another shadow who was petting her.

¨It seems you found your way back into the Velvet Room on your own¨ Igor said and gestured Tetsuya to sit on the chair in front of him ¨I see you are also spending your time well, forming bonds with other people who share the same power as you¨ He looked at the already revealed figures in the bar ¨But as you can see, there are still more yet without a contract¨

¨Do not take the words of the master as an insult, you are progressing on your path towards redemption¨ Silvia was cleaning some glasses, looking at Tetsuya as he was sitting on the empty chair in front of Igor.

¨To _celebrate_ this moment allow me to teach you something that will help you in this path of yours¨ The mysterious man waved his hand in front of him and two Personas appeared, although they had the size of a whiskey shot. It was Theseus and Jack O' Lantern ¨As you have figured already you have the ability to possess multiple Personas, with that, training will not only make you stronger but so will the manifestation of this power¨

¨Improving the bonds with the people around you is also a good way to strengthen your Personas, but there is also another way, it's call mixing¨

¨Mixing?¨ Tetsuya asked as he saw that the two Personas in front of him were now trapped inside of fancy alcohol bottles. Theseus' had a fancy design with stripes all around the sides and the cap resembled a jester's hat; on the other hand, Jack O' Lantern was inside of a bottle with a simple design with a seal that had the infinite symbol and the cap was pointy, almost like a wizard's hat.

¨Mixing is the process of fusing two Personas and turn them into one, it will manifest into a new and more powerful being¨ The entities inside of the bottles turned into liquid and a cocktail shaker appeared in between them; the top opened and the cap from the bottles did as well, pouring the liquid into the shaker. As it closed the shaker floated to Silvia's hands and she worked with it.

It felt like a moment of tension as Silvia opened the shaker and poured the content into a glass that floated back to the table. Magically the glass turned into a bottle it had a chain around the neck with a lantern attached to it, the entire design resembled like a robe and the only way to open it was to pull the lantern up. Inside there was a dark horse with a white mane and two green horns.

¨As you can see, mixing can provide you with different and more powerful Personas, of course this was a demonstration, do not be afraid for the ones used are still with you¨ Igor waved his hand once again and the bicorn disappeared while both Theseus and Jack O' Lantern appeared once again.

¨The Compendium will keep track of all the Personas you encountered in your way, as well as the ones you decide to mix¨ Silvia grabbed the blue book from underneath the counter.

¨Progress in your path and more services in the Velvet Room will open for you. But for now let us forge a contract between the two of us¨

_I am thou, thou art I… Thou hast acquired a new vow._

_It shall open a path and break the chains from the past._

_With the birth of the Judgment Persona, you acquired new power that will lead to redemption._

¨Now before you go, any questions?¨ But Tetsuya shook his head ¨Very well, good luck in your path, Fool¨

Tetsuya blinked and felt a strange feeling that he couldn't describe at first until it finally hit him, it was pain, something was biting his ear.

¨Boss!¨ Letho was yelling at his right ear while biting him to put him out of that trance ¨What are you doing?¨

¨Eh?¨ He looked around and noticed the extra weight on his right shoulder ¨What?¨ He was back in the street, leaning near the door, apparently his body moved to the side while he was inside of the Velvet Room ¨I'm back¨

¨You're back? Where did you go? You just walked to that wall then stood here for some time¨ Letho paused, looking back at where the door is but she couldn't see anything ¨Are you alright, boss?¨

¨Yeah… it's just… my mind is thinking on that labyrinth, I… I want to imagine there's a way to close it¨ Tetsuya tried to make some conversation, even if he had a talking rabbit on his shoulder and the whole events that happened she (or anyone) would believe about the Velvet Room at all.

¨Well, there might be a way, but for now you should make preparations for tomorrow, give the gear to Roka and get some good sleep¨

Tetsuya nodded and Letho jumped inside of the bag then the two of them returned to the dorms. They would have a long day ahead.

* * *

**A new bond and now the party has weapons, needless to say enxt chapter there will be some fighting. This is like the beginning in most Persona games where schedule is very strict on what to do so it will take a bit more chapters before Tetsuya will be able to have some free time to meet more people or increase the bonds he already has.**

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**MrFiretank:** _Alright not going to lie, Letho is even more adorable in this than I thought at first. Can't wait to read the next Chapter, especially with the first big showdown to get hyped up~!_

**Thanks for that, though the Letho in this story is not too different from the one in the RP, of course their story is different. And yes, the first big showdown is coming soon, although it is not revealed who it is yet.**

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**Hope you enjoyed the chapter, I will now focus on my other story since I got something written already but I'll try to keep a good schedule with this one, no promises though!**

**If you want to send a message I'll always read the PMs and reviews, if not you can find me on my Discord server:** **discorddotgg / 7ZUptrJ (of course the dot should be replaced with a . )**

**This was Tourvelix to remind you to stay safe in these quarantien times wherever you are. Until then hope you have a great weekend and as always:**

**See you in the next chapter ;)**


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